remember, if you have your own hit or of miss, be sure to tweet it to us at jer on fnc. that's it for this week's show. thanks to my esteemed panel and all of you for watching. i'm paul gigot. hope to see you all right here next week. arthel: the u.s. setting another disturbing record for the daily coronavirus cases, reporting more than 195,000 new infections yesterday. hospitalizations also reached record highs for the 11th day in a row. but while health experts warn the worst is yet to come, there is good news regarding the coronavirus vaccine. hello, everyone. welcome to america's news headquarters. i'm arthel neville. hi, eric. eric: hi, arthel. hello, welcome to the fox news channel. i'm eric shawn. concern has been growing as the weather is cooling and the holiday season approaches, that of course means that lots of people will be gathering inside and that's where health experts

worry that the virus can spread so easily. the latest numbers show nearly 12 million americans have been infected with coronavirus so far. this led to more than 255,000 deaths. however, there could be some hope on the horizon. drug maker pfizer yesterday asking u.s. health regulators for emergency use approval for the new covid-19 vaccine. we have coverage on all of this. alex hogan with what's upcoming, the thanksgiving holiday will look like a across the country. christina coleman has the latest on the vaccine and where we're seeing the worst outbreaks right now. hi, christina. >> reporter: hi, eric. well, cases are surging all over the country right now, but the upper midwest is getting hit particularly hard. states like north dakota, south dakota and wisconsin are seeing massive increases in infections right now. covid daily deaths nationwide are lower than they were during spring's peak.

on thursday, there were more than 2,000 covid fatalities in the u.s., making it one of the deadliest days since early may. hospitalizations hit an all-time high on thursday with more than 80,000 people being treated for the virus. as of of yesterday, at least 30 states saw a 20% or more increase in covid hospitalizations over the past seven days. hospital staffing and capacity are major concerns for a number of medical facilities as more covid patients need treatment. but some much needed help is on the way. the fda scientific advisors will have a public meeting on december 10 to review pfizer's request for emergency use of their vaccine. pfizer's ceo says in addition to seeking approval from the fda, the company initiated rolling applications to other regulatory authorities around the world. >> we will continue the work already underway to make sure we can begin shipping the vaccine

immediately after authorization or approval. based on current projections, we expect to produce globally up to 50 million doses in 2020 and up to 1.3 billion doses by the end of 2021. >> reporter: also company execs for moderna say their vaccine is 94.5% effective against covid-19. they plan to request emergency use for their vaccine from the fda in the coming weeks. eric. eric: christina, thank you. arthel. arthel: eric, with the rise in coronavirus cases, governors coast to coast are imposing tighter limits on business hours and social gatherings while the cdc is urging americans to avoid holiday travel. stay at home sports fans hoping to at least enjoy some football might face pandemic interroux as infection -- interruptions as infections shrine more nfl --

sideline more nfl players. alex hogan is live in new york city with more details for us. >> reporter: it's usually the busiest travel holiday and weekend of the year but you now the cdc is issuing its firmest guidelines yet, asking people to stay home and travel agencies, triple a, says it expects to see 10% fewer travelers and that most people will travel by car. the cdc says that postponing a holiday trip for now is the best way to protect yourself and others. yesterday the country hit a new record of more than 195,000 new daily cases. the cdc is asking people to avoid travel, avoid singing or shouting, especially indoors, avoid contact with people for 14 days before gathering, saying that pets should not interact with guests and that guests should bring food for themselves. >> people will be mourning the death of their loved one by new

years. >> reporter: states responding individually to the health crisis over the holiday, minnesota ordering that people only celebrate within their household, kentucky limiting gatherings to 8 people from two homes, pennsylvania issuing a mask order for anyone outside of the household. today in california, a curfew begins, keeping residents at home from 1 you 0:00 p.m. until -- 10:00 p.m. until 5:00 a.m. new mexico imposing a stay at home order for two weeks. thanksgiving will look different. today all 32 football teams will operate under the covid-19 protocol for the rest of the season. players will need to test negative the previous day before entering the facilities, they'll need to wear masks inside, take their meals to go and have all of their meetings be virtual and of course this also includes thanksgiving, this week, they are prohibited from any outdoor gathering outside of their facilities which of course means

this holiday. arthel. arthel: alex hogan, thank you very much. eric. eric: the number of people associated with the president infected with coronavirus now growing. the president's eldest son, donald trump junior, testing positive for covid-19, baron already had it. housing and urban secretary of development, secretary of development ben carson, well, dr. carson said he was desperately ill with this recent case of covid-19 but he now credits president trump with saving his life by clearing him to use the experimental antibody treatment that doctors gave the president last month during his infection. none of these coronavirus developments seem to be slowing down the trump campaign's legal push to try to overturn the election results. mark meredith is live on the north lawn of the white house with more on that strategy. hi, mark. >> reporter: good afternoon. the trump campaign putting time and effort focused on michigan's results even though as we've been seeing the court challenges

have come up short in the last few weeks. the president is relying on the gop chair and the rnc chairwoman after they requested a delay in certification. the state is getting ready to certify its results on monday. michigan shows the latest numbers have joe biden ahead by 150,000 votes. and gary peters is ahead of the republican candidate by 92,000 vote. they want a second look at the numbers coming out of wayne county before certification. in a letter they write, we are distressed by the comments by some of the public officials in michigan, casually dismissing the significant problems and irregularities seen in wayne county. on friday, the president had a chance to meet with state lawmakers from michigan, following the meeting those republicans said they have still not seen any evidence that would change the outcome of the election but today trump's campaign spokesperson, kaley mackayleighmcenany, says there d to rush in wrapping up this election.

>> it was not an orderly transition that he was given and now it's voters simply ask questions about a fraudulent mail-in ballot system. we're told that we're yeah. >crazy.the hypocrisy is real. >> reporter: the decision not to concede is bringing criticism from both parties. mitt romney said he is trying to subvert the will of the voters. elizabeth warren wrote on swit. heather:twittedder, let's be cle republicans who are dodging questions or releasing wishy, washy statements as the administration refuses to concede are complicit in a dangerous attack on the core foundation of our democracy. we heard from than democrats. we'll see if more republicans having to say. president trump decided not to take questions yesterday in the briefing room, he spoke about prescription drugs. a lot of people eager to ask the president what's going on with

his strategy. we haven't had a chance to do that with questions. he was in virginia earlier today. he's back at the white house of. they've called a lid. don't expect to see him on camera today. eric. eric: mark, thanks so much. and in a moment, we'll hear from a former white house chief of staff about what should happen in a transition. mark, thank you. arthel. arthel: in the face of the trump campaign challenging his victory as well as the pandemic, president-elect joe biden considers nominees to fill his cabinet and we're learning mr. biden could announce his selections for two key positions next week. hillary vaughn is live in wilmington, delaware with more. hi, hillary. >> reporter: hi, arthel. president-elect joe biden has reportedly made up his mind about two key positions, treasury secretary and secretary of state. but while biden is busy filling his cabinet, there is a struggle right now between moderates and progressives in his party. during the campaign, biden called the election a battle for the soul of this nation.

and democrats today are admitting there is a battle for the soul of biden's administration. >> there are generally going to be some kind of internal battle to see who is in fact controlling the soul of that administration. there are people who would be further to the left than, say, me or o others who would want to have things going their way. >> reporter: fox news has learned who is on the short list for secretary of state. reports indicate he could announce his pick within the next week. the hill reports that tony blinkin is the frontrunner right now, he served as security advisor under the obama administration. and for treasury, we're learning that progressives want federal reserve chairman jane janet yelo be the pick.

one lingering question left unanswered, is there a place for one of the most popular and powerful progressives in biden's cabinet but biden along with some democrats are dodging the question. >> bernie sanders, i think you know him, has all but advertised the job of labor secretary. no indications yet whether joe biden would be interested in him for that position, if any position. but what do you think of that? >> well, you know, with very a deep bench of people who are qualified to serve in the biden cabinet. >> reporter: arthel, biden did meet with governors this week, five republican governors, five democratic governors, to get info on what they need to address the spike in covid cases that we're seeing nationwide. arthel. arthel: hillary vaughn, thank you very much, hillary. eric. eric: arthel, president trump supporters meanwhile in georgia, gathering at the state capitol in atlanta.

they're protesting the outcome of the election. this comes just one day after the georgia secretary of state's office certified their results there, affirming president-elect joe biden's win in the state after a hand recount that confirmed what the voting machines tallied there. charles watson is out with the protesters, he is in atlanta live with the very latest. charles. >> reporter: hey, good evening, eric. those two competing protests have largely died out at this point. it was almost like at the snap of a finger, police were able to clear out this area and disburse protesters. things were tense out here for quite a while. you had two competing protests, one in support of president trump, the other opposing the president and we saw these groups as the day moved on, sort of getting closer and closer together. georgia state police noticed the same thing, they got into the street and sort of formed a human barrier to keep separation between the two groups.

of course, this all started this morning with the stop the steal rally. hundreds of supporters for president trump showed up in front of the state capitol to contest the results of the election. a lot of those folks believe it was stolen from the president here in georgia and other states, claims that are largely unsubstantiated. the secretary of state defended the integrity of the election here in georgia and has certified the results. but there is a push among trump supporters who were out here today to get governor brian kim to remedy what they think has been a fraudulent election. now, it's not clear what if anything the governor is able to do to overturn those election results but he is now asking for a recount. it's not clear exactly when that will happen. the trump campaign has until tuesday to request one themselves but certainly governor brian kim facing a lot of pressure. eric. eric: charles, thank you. arthel. arthel: meanwhile, georgia

senate runoff candidates are hitting the campaign trail today ahead of the january vote that will decide the balance of power in washington. matt fin is live in atlanta with more on the race. matt. >> reporter: arthel, the campaigning and political events are not over here in georgia. it's a busy saturday. both sides right now are trying to convince voters to come back out to the polls in just a matter of weeks for this state's two senate runoff races that are going to control who has power in the united states senate. democratic candidate here in georgia reverend raphael warnock holding a series of meet and greets today. he's been attacked by his opponent, kelly loeffler, for a portion of one of his sermons in which he served in part that people can't serve god in the military. warnock told voters it's time for the poor and dispossessed to have a senator. >> the wealthy and the well-connected have enough representatives in the senate.

it's about time ordinary people had a representative in the united states senate. >> reporter: kelly loeffler and david perdue are campaigning with a message that they become the final line of defense against democrats completely controlling washington. vice president pence was here yesterday to join the senators on the trail, he urged georgia voters that they must hold the line to defend the republican majority in the senate. just yesterday, georgia's republican governor certified the state's vote. president-elect biden the winner. however, georgia's governor says he's not satisfied with georgia's election process. >> it's important to note that this audit only looked at ballots, not the signatures on the absentee applications or the signatures on the ballot envelopes. the georgians i've heard from are extremely concerned about this. so i encourage the secretary to

consider addressing these concerns. >> reporter: the president's campaign has until tuesday the to request a recount here in georgia and also earlier today the president tweeted that there's big voter fraud information coming out here in georgia. so we'll keep you updated on that as well, arthel. arthel: matt fin in atlanta. thank you. one of the runoff candidates will sit down with maria bartiromo, kelly loeffler joins maria on sunday morning futures, tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. eastern on the fox news channel. eric. eric: arthel, as president-elect joe biden is forging ahead with his transition without help or resources from the trump administration, we're going to sit down in just a moment with a former white house chief of staff, on the lack of the cooperation and what it could mean and how transitions should work. ♪ you're still the one that i love to touch ♪

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eric: we are less than two months from inauguration day and president-elect joe biden and his forces find, well, the incoming administration faced with dhal challenges, the wallt up and the decision not to cooperate by the trump administration in a transition because the election has not yet

been certified. officials are waiting as the trump campaign continues to contest the election results in court. the last administration to face a similar challenge was president george w bushes' after the 2000 election, that wasn't settled until the supreme court ruled gave the bush administration five weeks for the transition. the man in charge of that, andy card, joins us now. he's the former chief of staff from president george w bush, who had to deal with the condensed version. thank you for being with us. >> it's a critical time for the united states and for democracies. eric: and why do you say that and what are you troubled by, the fact that there is a lack of cooperation or do you think it's appropriate because the election hasn't been certified? >> we have to learn from the past and when george w bush was a controversial supreme court

declared president of the united states, there was a very short transition from the clinton administration to the george w bush administration. and remember the attacks of 9/11 2001, the commission that investigated the 9/11 response suggested that that transition that was very short really compromised the ability of the incoming president to have a team fully prepared to be able to address some of the challenges that were necessary for george w bush to do with the attacks of 9/11. so that commission, a bipartisan commission, recommended that future presidents should make sure that there is a good transition for the incoming team, even if you're not sure of the results. but just get the transition up and running. so that's lesson number one. number two is the reality of the pandemic in america today. and we know that vaccines are just about ready to be distributed and they will be distributed after probably the

inauguration of a president. now, maybe it will be donald trump getting a second term. i don't think there's a credible path for that to be the case but that could be the case. but if it is joe biden, and i think it probably would be, we would want to make sure that he was fully prepared to understand the burdens and challenges of distributing literally hundreds of billions of doses of vaccine across the country and make sure that it's done right. there's only one president at a time and donald trump is our president right now but on that moment, when they pass that baton from president a to president b, that new president has all of the responsibilities, the old president has none. i want of to make sure when the baton is passed that the new president, should it be joe biden, be ready to grab the baton and run with it. even if donald trump takes an oath of office again, he will be involved in a transition, liking changing many of the people serving in his administration,

whether it's joe biden or of donald trump, we need a good transition. the world is watching. eric: are you concern there will be setbacks because of the delay. let me read you part of the presidential transition act of 1963. there's a specific process. quote, any disruption occasioned by the transfer of the executive power could produce results detrimental to the safety and well-being of the united states and its people. that's exactly what you're talking about in terms of national security and in terms of coronavirus. >> well, in terms of national security, there are some hot spots around the world right now that we should be paying attention to and we haven't been. obviously, iran is a challenge. what's going on in a azubajan ad armenia is a problem. what china is doing to hong kong and potentially taiwan is a challenge. there are a lot of challenges, including in our own neighborhood, in veins way that.

venezuela. i want to make sure the next president is fully prepared to understand the challenges. that's why the transition is so important, never mind the reality of the pandemic on the united states right now. eric: finally, what would you like to see? the states are being certified for mr. biden getting the majority of the electoral votes. what type of smoother process would you like to see now, considering the fact that the gsa administrator, emily murphy, has not signed off -- apparently they haven't signed off on anything at all. >> there's no cooperation from the trump administration to a potential biden administration and it's sad. i find it tawdry and unacceptable. we all want the transition to go well. some people want donald trump to be able to transition for a second term and we would want that to go well. should joe biden be the one that's going to be president and i think he's likely to be because i haven't seen a credible path for donald trump to be declared the winner, i

want to make sure he's ready on day one. we deserve it as a democracy. the world should witness it because we want to polish our democracy and democrat strait to the world we can transfer from one leader to another leader even though it was a contentious election and the results might have been challenged right up to the bitter end. that's what we learned from what happened with george w bush when he became president and took the baton from bill clinton and, yes, george bush put reforms in place, barack obama benefited from those reforms. there was a very orderly transition from george w bush to barack obama. and a lot of people may not remember this but there was quite an orderly transition from barack obama to donald trump. so there is a way to do it and we can make it happen. eric: that is the glory and beauty of our democracy and this magnificent republic. former white house chief of staff, andy card, thank you and thanthank you for your service o our nation. >> thank you.

arthel: police in wisconsin searching for a gunman who injured eight people including a teenager at a shooting in a mall in suburban milwaukee yesterday. mike toe bin is live -- tobin is live in wisconsin with more. >> reporter: the manhunt is in full swing for the shooter at the mayfair mall. police are releasing some information about the motive of the shooter. they say the bloodshed was the result of anil tear case, this was -- an altercation, not a random act of violence. they're not saying much about the identification of the gunman ownership than he is a -- other than he is a white male in his 20 of20s or 30s. eight people were shot, one was a teenager. no one was killed but panic rang through the mall. >> i saw a lady come out on a stretcher with a baby. my uncle, he did come out. he got shot twice in the leg. it was pretty bad, you know.

>> this is outrageous. this is crazy. you know, i encourage people to take a stand and continue coming up here and shopping. don't let this deter you from coming up to mayfair mall or any mall. continue shopping. >> reporter: and southeast wisconsin was a busy place for police last night. just about 15 miles from this location there was a shooting on the interstate, followed by a high speed chase, a car crash, people got out of the car and ran. people apprehended them. late this afternoon police went on the record to say that is not connected to the shooting at the mall. arrest eric: governor kim reyns urging iowans to mask up, hospitals filling up with covid patients. straight ahead we speak to one iowa doctor on the frontlines

about the outbreak in the state and whether the governor's new rules go far enough. i'm erin. -and i'm margo.

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eric: here's a look at some of the other stories we're following right now. police searching for a gunman who shot a massachusetts state trooper during a traffic stop. it happened in cape cod last night. the trooper thankfully is doing okay. he was treated at a nearby hospital for a hand wound. mark meadows says he won't run for senate in north carolina in 2022. laura trump is exploring a possible run for the seat that weretiring republican richard br will veigh cat. the -- vacate. the fbi arresting a california man accused of running a drone. the criminal case believed to be the first one in the nation

stemming from a drone collision. and for more on these stories and the day's other news, all you have to do is download the fox news app, use your phone to take a picture of the qr code at the bottom of the screen. get started and stay informed up-to-the-minute. arthel. arthel: the united states has now surpassed 12 million coronavirus cases as infections continue surging across the country. many states that took the freedom first attitude are now adopting restrictions including mask mandates. that includes iowa, where governor kim reynolds once dismissed masks as a, quote, feel good measure but now sees hospitals filling up in her state. the chief executive officer of the university of iowa hospitals and clinics joins me now. governor kim reynolds has had a change of heart, issuing a mask

mandate when people are indoors and unable to maintain safe social distance from non-household members for 15 minutes or more. will this make a difference? >> absolutely. i certainly think it will make a difference. but it was part of a series of measures that she implemented that i think combined will really make progress. there were specific restrictions against gatherings which i think is equally important. both indoor and outdoor, kind of creating real clarity going into the holidays over how we need to handle the holiday season completely differently and you avoid gatherings of all sizes. arthel: i read that the federation of american scientists which separated out data from the u.s. covid-19 cases by state and globally, it ranked iowa 28th worldwide for daily covid-19 deaths per capita over a week. in your words, how dire is it in

iowa? >> it's been a very high infection rate and now we're seeing the hospitalization rate climbing and mortality statistics are really pretty serious. i think that we've seen peaks like this in different parts of the country. there's always cause for optimism. this week, within iowa, you're seeing that rapid increase begin to flatten. you're beginning to see hospitalization rate increase but not nearly what it was before. so we really see hope on the horizon. i think the safety measures implemented by the governor as well as what we're doing on a local level is beginning to make a difference but it's too early to tell. we can't be complacent. we have to continue down the course. overall, iowa hospitals are doing okay. we're certainly as a system under stress. we're at the highest level of hospitalizations that we've been during the pandemic. but we still have beds here at the university of iowa hospitals and clinics. we're able to work with other hospital partners to take

transfers when they're unable to take care of patients. overall, the system is under stress but it's not out of control. arthel: what more needs to be done? and do you think iowans, the folks as a community, do you think they've had a change of heart and are willing to do what it takes to flaten the curve there a, at the very least prevt more devastation? >> yeah, i think it's a work in progress. we're all tired of this pandemic. i'm tired of this pandemic. the community's tired of it. it has gone on for so long. unfortunately, the disease does not get tired and we have to remain compliant with these safety measures that we know work and especially going in the holiday a season, the winter season, it's going to be harder to be outdoors. there's going to be more chance for gatherings, indoors, more chance for us not to be able to distance and so i think this is going to be a critical moment where iowans really can step up and i expect that they will, now

given the very important challenge facing our hospitals and i think there's been a lot of talk of the freedom that americans and iowans have and i think that freedom comes with responsibility and when one person's need for freedom is causing hospitals to be this overwhelmed it hurts the public good. if our hospitals are under stress, then if you have a heart attack, if you have a stroke, the hospital may not be at the capacity to deliver care to you in the same manner that they would have been able to do last year and i think iowans are beginning to realize that. i think the country's beginning to realize this. these personal freedoms and these personal decisions have impact to everyone. and i think that we'll see some progress. arthel: well, well-said. thank you so much for joining us. and good luck. eric. >> thank you. eric: pfizer set to ship

millions of doses of the coronavirus vaccine by the end of the year, assuming the fda approves emergency use. distribution faces a challenge. the shots need to be kept at sub-zero temperatures. in fact, 94 degrees below zero. that requires frozen carbon dioxide which we know as dry ice. to facilitate the rollout, josh rosenthal shows us how one dry ice factory is trying to keep up with the sky-rocketing demand. >> reporter: guys, this is dry ice. it is 109 degrees below zero. it may be key to getting us past the pandemic. the race to get a coronavirus vaccine to market, it looks like pfizer is in the lead. their vaccine needs to be kept cold, like really cold. so much so, the company's developed temperature controlled thermal shippers filled with dry

ice which is where roberts oxygen in gaithersburg comes in. since the pfizer news broke, they've been hearing from area hospitals a lot. >> definitely 50 to 75% increase in calls. >> reporter: all because they make a whole lot of this. i haven't seen dry ice since like seventh grade science class. you guys produce 1600 pounds per hour from each one of these machines? >> that's correct. >> reporter: the process is fairly simple. the tankers pick up liquid c o2, bring it to the plant, fill up the bulk tank and it feeds it into the machines that turn the liquid c o2 into solid co2 or dry ice. are you guys planning on increasing production because of the demand? >> absolutely. we don't know the percentages yet. again, it's a very early stage of this so a lot of hospitals are reaching out to make sure we have the ability to produce it and that's really where it is right now. more information to come.

>> reporter: any way you stack it, this family owned business has been around since 1966. it's more than happy to help. >> we're all in this together so it just feels good to be able to help the nation and help patients in this situation that we're in. >> reporter: this isn't the first time roberts oxygen has helped out with the fight against covid. back in march, and april, they supplied a whole lot of extra medical oxygen to area hospitals that were in need because of all those extra patients. eric: and they're doing a great job and we thank them. that was josh rossen tall from fox 5 in washington. the new york state, have you heard about this, andrew cuomo is getting recognized by hollywood for his televised coronavirus briefings. not everyone believes his response deserves an you award. we'll tell you about that, next. we made usaa insurance for veterans like martin.

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>> the question was when you start reopening activity will go up, number of cases will go up, can you control the increase? that was the question. we have had a slight decline and now we're basically running flat and that is great news. eric: that was new york governor andrew cuomo in july during one of his coronavirus briefings. now he's going to get an emmy award for that. the international academy of television arts and sciences will bestow the founders award on the empire state's leader on monday, this i as the number of confirmed covid cases in the state in one day yesterday was close to 5500 with the state positivity rate of 3.3%, that's up from last week. so does the governor deserve a coveted tv trophy. joe concha is here, media

columnist at the hill and fox news contributor. joe, an emmy? your reaction. >> well, i think in the early day as you pointed out, eric, the messaging was very good. it was meticulous. it was filled with information. but it also had empathy and optimism and he got high praise from the left and the right and from me as far as those presentations were concerned. however, given what we know now in terms of and particularly the governor's order to put covid-19 positive patients back into nursing homes, that's like taking a blow torch to dry grass in terms of deaths, in terms of spread. do you give him an emmy? do you give him an emmy given the fact that he has refused to allow an independent investigation into what happened with that nursing home decision? the nursing part really wasn't part of the presentations like we talked about. what part of the presentations also discussed the fact that while the governor is steadfast in terms of wearing a mask indoors at all times, there are

several photos and video of the governor being in close quarters with other people without a mask on. so given what we know now, there are very few that i'm seeing from the left and from the right that believe that governor cuomo deserves any award at this point. it's like giving jack kevorkian posthumously an award for population control. it's something that feels wrong, the optics are bad here. eric: that's a harsh one. but let me read you what -- first of all, an emmy award for real life, for a tragedy, for a catastrophe of overwhelming consequences that has spread such death and destruction around our country. here's what the academy says, quote, this is from the president. quote, the governor's 111 daily briefings worked so well because he effectively created television shows with characters and plot lines. people around the world tuned in to find out what was going on and new york off tough became a symbol of the determination to fight back and you're right, he

was a voice of calm and reason and control and comfort for many people but our beloved colleague, janice dean, has been so courageous because her inlaws succumbed to covid in a nursing home. here's what she tweeted, thousands of elderly that died in nursing homes because of your leadership won't be able to watch the show unfortunately and domenech says andrew cuomo deserves to be on trial because of the people in nursing homes that were murdered instead he is getting an emmy. is this unseemly? >> this isn't a shoavment this ain't survivor. the governor is promoting a book that he released weeks ago as the pandemic was roaring back, 200,000 new cases alone on friday. again, the optics are horrible. and again, the performance is worse. in new york, let me compare new york to florida, actually, to

put this in context. new york has twice has many deaths as florida does, despite the fact that florida has a larger population, older poll population, a -- population, an older population, yet the governor is doing an end zone dance while this is raging. while the book came out, nearly 700 people have died in new york. the optics are horrible and not too many people happy about the emmy, regardless of your affiliation. eric: it is not a tv show. it's real life that we're all going through right now. joe, thank you for your insight. arthel. arthel: arrest at the southern border reaching the highest levels in over a year. what's behind this latest spike in that's up next. ♪ here? nah. ♪ introducing the all new chevy trailblazer.

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arthel: arrests on the u.s. southern border rose to 69,000 last month. the highest this year and the most since july 2019. border officials say the pandemic has a lot to do with it. lucas tomlinson explains. >> reporter: another sign of the global economic devastation brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, motivating migrants to make the dangerous journey north.

69,000 arrested last month at the southern border with mexico last month, the highest for any october since 2005. >> they've been this way for decades an decades. first and foremost is economics. anywhere we see worsening economic conditions, illegal immigration follows. because of covid-19, that's what we're seeing, not just in mexico but the western hemisphere. >> reporter: twitter briefly suspended the commissioner's account last month for violating the hateful conduct policy after he tweeted about the border wall. they called the move unamerican. they say they're working the border crucial to prevent the spread of the coronavirus in the united states. one-third detained each month are repeat offenders. joe biden has been critical of the president's immigration policies, he says it was critical of the trump administration after they lost

track of parents and children that were separated at the border. joe biden calls the president's views misguided, saying the object oobsession with buildingl does nothing to deal with security challenges. they celebrated the construction of nearly 400 miles of new border wall along the southern boundary. arthel: lucas, thank you very much. and we'll be right back. ok everyone, our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition for strength and energy. whoo-hoo! great tasting ensure with 9 grams of protein, 27 vitamins and minerals, and nutrients to support immune health. and nutrients to if ththen i'm not a real potato reciidaho potato farmer.shes, genuine idaho potatoes not just a side dish anymore. always look for the grown in idaho seal.

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eric: president trump forges ahead with the high stakes showdown over the election results as he continues to insist the outcome was not fair. the campaign's legal team is urging recounts in a few battleground states. despite mounting losses in court, election officials saying there is no evidence of the widespread fraud as claimed, the campaign presses ahead with a looming certification deadline coming in a few weeks. welcome to america's news headquarters. i'm eric shawn. hi, arthel. arthel: hello, everyone. i'm arthel neville. the president met with top republican state lawmakers from michigan yesterday but they say they, quote, have not yet made -- been made aware of any information that would change the outcome of the election in their state. gop is pushing for an audit of some of the votes there before next week's deadline to certify the results. but a michigan official says

state law does not allow that. we have live fox news team coverage. hillary vaughn is standing by with the latest on the biden transition and charles watson is in georgia where the president's supporters are rallying. but we begin with mark meredith at the white house for more on the president's legal challenges. mark. >> reporter: arthel, good evening. president trump says he still plans to show evidence of widespread fraud in the election but time is running out and we have also seen that several of his court cases have not been able to go very nature the courts. that includes what's going to happen in michigan as they get ready to certify their votes in michigan. it's set to certify monday. republicans in the state, they want to see a two week delay to review the results in wayne county, the area around detroit. although it apierce unlikely that -- appears unlikely that the two week delay would be granted. the trump campaign says they plan to rely on the courts moving forward.

>> our justice system is where that will play out. that's something that the media cannot get in the way of. they can try to hide it. the american people are smart. the 73 million people who showed up to vote for this president, the most ever votes for a sitting president, they have a voice. we will be heard. >> reporter: on friday the president met with republican state lawmakers from michigan at the white house. the president was accused of trying to subvert the will of the people even by a republican senator but the state lawmakers insist they have not seen any evidence that would change joe biden from receiving the state's 16 electoral votes. last night we learned that donald trump junior tested positive for coronavirus. he was not showing any symptoms and is quarantining on the safe side. the president tweeted this morning his son is doing very well. tonight we're learning more about housing and urban development secretary ben carson's struggle with the coronavirus. he laid out his experience saying he felt extremely sick, then he improved, only to later feel, quote, desperately ill. he also wrote president trump

was following my condition and cleared me for the monoclonal antibody therapy that he previously received that i am convinced saved my life. certainly wishing the secretary a speedy recovery. as for president trump, he's here at the white house tonight. they called a lid, not expecting to see him on camera. earlier today he met with world leaders virtually for the g-20 summit. arthel and eric, that will continue on tomorrow as well. back to you guys. arthel: and the white house looking quite majestic behind you. >> reporter: it's a beautiful night. i agree. it's an absolutely gorgeous night. arthel: get a selfie while you're there. eric. eric: well, joe biden now enters his third week as our nation's president-elect. he responded in the last hour, visiting saint ann's church in wilmington, delaware where he attended evening masker this as mr. biden continues to slam the trump administration for its response to the coronavirus pandemic, for promising that under his leadership when he takes office there will not be,

he says, a national shutdown as some have claimed and he says a vaccine will be made available to every american. hillary vaughn covers the biden transition for us, she is live in wilmington, delaware with more on this, hi, hillary. >> reporter: president-elect joe biden met with republican and democratic governors this week, asking them what they need for covid relief and he capped off the week with a meeting with the top democrats in congress. house speaker nancy pelosi and senate minority leader chuck schumer, to figure out how to get it done before he moves into the white house but he brushed off valid questions from the press at that meeting when they tried to press him for more info about going back to school. >> mr. biden, the covid task force said it's safe for students to be in class. are you going to encourage unions to cooperate more to bring kids back to classrooms, sir? >> let's go.

thank you. >> reporter: biden has not spoken to the one person who needs to be on-board to get another round of relief through congress, senate majority leader mitch mcconnell, who said in a statement yesterday that he wants democrats to work with them to spend hundreds of billions of dollars left over from the last relief bill they passed, quote, congress should repurpose this money toward the kind of urgent, important and targeted relief measures that republicans have been trying to pass for months but which democrats have repeatedly blocked with all or nothing he demands. some house democrats today are admitting that the stalemate between speaker pelosi and republicans in the senate are is getting old and something's got to give. >> well, i think at the end of the day there will be individuals in the democratic caucus and hopefully in the republican conference who become sick and tired of them failing

to get critically important legislation through. >> reporter: and eric, the only thing on biden's schedule today officially was meeting with transition advisors but we did catch him a few moments ago leaving saturday mass where he was asked if people should still be allowed to attend religious services throughout the thanksgiving day holiday and he said yes, they should. but safely. eric. eric: hillary vaughn, live in wilmington, delaware. hillary, thank you. arthel. arthel: trump supporters in georgia protesting the outcome of the election in the once reliably red state. just one day after the republican secretary of state certified the results following a hand recount. many in the crowd directing their anger at the gop. charles watson is live in atlanta amongst the president trump supporters with more.

charles. >> reporter: good evening, arthel. police have largely disbursed the large crowds we saw in front of the georgia state capitol a short time ago. we had two competing protests out here, one in support of president trump, the other opposing and i have to tell you, things got really tense out here for some moments as these two competing groups really got too close for comfort. luckily, police saw what was going on, they stepped in and created some separation between the two groups before things got bad. but that really turned, where both sides started hurling incultinsults at one another. hundreds of president trump supporters showed up in front of the state capitol to contest the results of the election. a lot of the folks said this election was stolen from president trump. take a listen. >> the press is not actually covering the fraud. they're suppressing us. we can't let our voices be heard.

the evidence is not showing because they're not allowing the truth to come out. >> reporter: now, georgia secretary of state brad raffensperger defended the integrity of the election and has certified the results but governor kim -- he certified the results himself but he is now calling for another recount, certainly a lot of pressure on governor kim from his republican counterpart as they try to get to the bottom of this election, arthel. arthel: that would be a second recount. okay. charles watson, thank you. eric. eric: and arthel, others say of course the media is covering these allegations. as georgia certifies the electors for joe bidens, candidates for the senate runoffs are campaigning hard today and both parties are ramping up you spending as they battle over control of the upper chamber, the senate is at stake.

matt fin is live in atlanta with more on the race. >> reporter: the campaigning and political stumping is not over of here in georgia. right now, democrats and republicans are trying to convince voters, some that are probably very fatigued. to head back out to the polls in just a couple of weeks for the senate runoff races in georgia that are going to control who has the balance of power in the united states senate. today, one of the democratic candidates for senate, reverend raphael warnock, he held a series of meet and greets. he's been repeatedly attacked by his opponent, republican senator, kelly loeffler for a portion of one of his sermons where he preached in part that people can't serve god in the military. warnock today told voters it's time for the poor and dispossessed to have a senator. >> we have to decide if we want to become a more hateful, fearful, divided nation, where everybody's afraid of somebody

else, because they look different from you, because they're from a different place, or are we going to build what dr. king called the beloved community. >> reporter: georgia's two republican senators, kelly loeffler and david perdue, are campaigning on the message that they've become a final line of defense against democrats completely controlling washington. vice president pence have come to georgia to rally republicans. pence urged georgia's voters that their two republican senators must hold the line to defend the republican majority in the senate. >> i'm here because i stand with president donald trump and i'm here because president donald trump and i stand with senator david perdue and senator kelly loeffler. thanks for coming out today. the president and i couldn't be more grateful for the support of the people across the state of georgia over the past four years

and over the past two weeks. >> reporter: and earlier today the president tweeted out that there is going to be big voter fraud information coming out of georgia. we'll keep you updated on that, eric. eric: matt, thanks so much in atlanta. arthel. arthel: covid-19 cases in the u.s. setting another record for a single day, johns hopkins university says the number of new infections yesterday topped 195,000. the total number of infections in the u.s. has now surpassed 12 million. health experts warn that with winter and the holiday approaching, the worst is yet to come. despite the staggering numbers, there could be hope on the horizon. drug maker pfizer is applying to the fda for emergency approval of its trial vaccine or a vaccine after trials showed its effectiveness at 95%. christina coleman has more now from los angeles. christina.

>> reporter: hi, arthel. well, the fda will meet december 10 to review pfizer's request and considering how fast the deadly virus is spreading, the agency is expected to move quickly. >> within weeks, we could have a decision from fda and within 24 hours of that, we will have started distributing millions of doses of safe and effective vaccine to begin protecting our most vulnerable across america. >> reporter: covid daily deaths nationwide on average are lower than they were during spring's peak. on thursday alone there were more than 2,000 covid fatalities in the u.s., making it one of the deadliest days since early may. hospitalizations hit an all-time high on thursday with more than 80,000 people being treated for the virus. as of yesterday, at least 30 states saw a 20% or more increase in covid hospitalizations over the past seven days. hospital capacity and staffing are major concerns right now for a number of medical facilities

across the country as more covid patients need treatment and sometimes the outcome is grim. here's an icu nurse out of arizona. >> the majority of the patients as they succumb to the disease are saying good-bye via video call, telephone call, sometimes it happens so quick that we're unable to get ahold of family. >> reporter: now, as of right now, covid cases are surging in every part of the country but some states in the upper midwest are getting hit particularly hard like north and south dakota, wisconsin, and iowa. arthel. arthel: christina, thank you very much. eric. eric: president-elect joe biden facing pressure from both the left and the right in his party, as he faces some important decisions on whom to pick for his cabinet. we'll have some details on names

straight ahead. plus, be sure to catch sunday morning futures tomorrow morning, maria bartiromo will be interviewing among others house minority leader kevin mccarthy about the election and transition, that's tomorrow 10:00 a.m. eastern right here on the fox news channel. we'll be back with more news in a moment. at visionworks, we know it's easy to forget to use your vision benefits before the year's up. this is us making sure you don't. use 'em before you lose 'em, backed by our 100-day guarantee!! visionworks. see the difference.

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>> you'll soon hear my choice for treasury. i made that decision. we made that decision. and you'll hear that either just before or just after thanksgiving. number one. and you'll find it is someone who i think is -- will be accepted by all elements of the democratic party. progressive to the moderate coalitions. arthel: that's president-elect joe biden working to assemble his cabinet as he faces pressure from both republicans and the democratic parties progressive wing. there are risks to his approach. those nominees have to receive the senate's approval and the georgia runoff elections in january will determine which party controls the chamber. avi stoddard joins us now. even though it's more than a

month away, would it be better for president-elect biden to wait for most of those selections, wait on the outcome of the senate runoff in georgia and a how might the outcome influence his ultimate selection? >> well, arthel, i think that it's clear in the environment that we're in that the republicans who want to cement their senate majority and keep those two incumbent republican senators in the runoff january 5 ha5are not going to be open to y of the choices that joe biden makes while they're still fighting to energize their voters and tell them that they are the last line of defense against democratic control in washington. so by waiting i think that he could take some of the heat off whether the senators and the republican party face a minority or they pick up those -- they've kept those two seats and they're in the majority. i think they're likely to show

more deference in that environment than right now where the heat is very high. the president is making false claims about the election. the republicans are silent about it. and that's all in the interest of holding power and keeping those seats. so i think that will be a different time window, depending on whether or not the democrats pick up those seats or the republicans hold them. i think that the announcement that joe biden will be making now would fall under heightened criticism from republicans and if he's ever going to get any kind of deference from them it's likely to come after january 5. arthel: and beyond a potential gop ruled senate, president-elect biden has to face the moderates and progressives mostly in his own party. how can he meet those demands? >> well, he doesn't have to meet those demands because progressives lost very badly in this election. the blue wave that democrats hoped for never materialized, neither in federal office in the state, i mean in the senate and the house, the house where they

lost nine seats to the republicans and the senate where they've netted only one pick-up and are now fighting for those georgia seats and then across the state legislatures around the country, the democrats have not seen progressive energy bring out enough voters to produce enough power to push their policy initiatives. and so if you look at the margin in the senate, even if the democrats were to pick up those two seats in georgia, they would be at a 50/50 senate with the vice president, kamala harris, breaking the tie. it would be a very weak margin, not the kind of margin where you can get anything done, nothing near what they would need to get over the legislative filibuster at 60 votes. they will not be able to eliminate the legislative fill butter because they don't have -- filibuster because they don't have the votes in their own party to do so. on their best day they may be able to bring up one or two or of three moderate republicans, bringing their vote to 53. this is an incredibly tight

margin and biden doesn't have any power in this election to pursue progressive dreams. in the end it's going to be moderate stuff coming out of the senate. arthel: do you think president-elect biden can expand the shrunken political appetite in d.c., bring more policies to the table that might be appealing in a way that more lawmakers might be able to stomach? >> you know, arthel, we just don't know what the environment is going to be like. there is more than a handful of senators in the republican party that are looking to run and be in the field in 2024. whether the republican senate is likely -- in the minority or majority to want to work with president biden really remains to be seen. so we're talking about really getting the spending bill through and him taking executive action, like president trump did, from the white house and the executive branch on things like daca and the travel muslim

ban, some aca stabilization, the affordable care act measures, not a lot of sweeping reforms coming out of legislatively, bills that pass the house and senate and are signed into law. that's just really hard to see at this point. are there things could work on in a bipartisan way? certainly. we have to see what the landscape will look and feel like once we get past inauguration. we have a lot of people defending what president trump is lying about and looking to their own futures to run for president in a few short years so it's really hard to see bipartisanship breaking out in the senate. arthel: so more campaigning and less actual doing the job. >> unfortunately. arthel: thank you for joining us. take care. eric. eric: well, arthel, still ahead, president trump, well, he's planning to withdraw thousands of american troops from afghanistan just days before president-elect joe biden is set to take office.

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i could have ever made because it gave me peace of mind. ♪ arthel: here's a look at some other stories in the headlines today. a manhunt is underway in wisconsin for a suspect who opened fire in a suburban mall near milwaukee yesterday. seven adults and a teenager were injured. police believe ani an altercan led up to the shooting. hundreds of residents are being allowed to return home after a wildfire threatened neighborhoods near call rough dough springs. -- colorado springs. firefighters say the bear creek fire is fully contained and no structures were damaged. big box stores are running low on toilet paper and cleaning supplies as families stock up on essentials due to new coronavirus restrictions. target and kroger have imposed purchase limits on some products

while walmart warns some of the items in the stores have already completely sold out. for more on these stories and the day's other news, download the fox news app, use your phone to take a picture of the qr code at the bottom of the screen and get started. eric: at least eight people were killed and 31 injured in a rocket attack that targeted a neighborhood in kabul's green zone in afghan taken this morning. a group affiliated with the islamic state claimed responsibility for the attack as talks resume. brian chilcote has details. >> reporter: u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo met with members of the taliban and members of the afghan delegation, trying to find a pathway to peace with the taliban at those talks, as the war continues to rage back home in afghanistan.

the secretary of state's michigan really to put pressure on the taliban to agree to if not refrain from violence, to at least tone it down. the backdrop, afghan officials telling us earlier today militants fired some two dozen rockets, likely from the back of a truck, into residential neighborhoods in the afghan capital, causing mayhem as people were just trying to make their way to work. one of the rockets landed in front of a bakery, injuring many of the people working at it. we've seen a shocking level of violence even by afghanistan cards in the capital this month. dozens and dozens of civilians have been killed in attacks this november, including two dozen students killed in one attack on a university at the start of the month. the taliban have ignored most requests to put down their arms but a spokesman said they were not behind the attack, instead an affiliate of islamic state is

taking responsibility. back at the peace talks, one of the members of the afghan negotiating team said he asked the u.s. secretary of state to continue to put pressure on the taliban to sign up to a cease fire, something they so far have refused to do and also to try and hold off on that drawdown of u.s. troops now planned for january. eric. eric: sadly that does not end. ryan, thank you. arthel. arthel: as the bloodshed continues in afghanistan, president trump is planning to withdraw thousands of troops from the war-torn country. the reduction of u.s. forces expected to come only days before joe biden takes office. democratic congressman john gay marccongressman johngaremundi j. candidate trump promised to do this and most americans want all troops home but is this a smart

strategic move and what kind of advantage does it provide iran, isis, and the taliban who has a deal on the table with president trump? >> well, first of all, we need to understand that, yes, we would all like this war to end. 19 years, 3500 plus americans killed and probably ten times that wounded seriously one way or another, yes, we want it over. but we also need to be aware and this was presented to us at an armed services committee hearing, where it was actually chaired by adam smith, the comparemachairmanof the full co. i'm chairman of the subcommittee. all of the witnesses who have 25, 30 years of experience in afghanistan said the same thing, and that is pulling the troops out at this time reduces and in some cases may eliminate whatever leverage the united states has. the presence of those troops there is a political leverage to

be used against the taliban and also to persuade the afghan government to come to terms. pulling the troops out is a very serious mistake in the view of those witnesses and i share that. also, we're not in afghanistan alone. the nato countries came to our assistance following 9/11, article 5 of the nato agreement, they helped us and have been there and they've lost over 1,000 members of their armed forces over the same intervening time. there was no discussion with nato about the withdrawal of these 25 -- excuse me, the withdrawal down to 2,500 troops. it is a very serious mistake. negotiations, very, very important. arthel: so if president-elect biden once he takes office would want to put those troops back into afghanistan and iraq, how

easily or difficult would it be for him to do so and would president biden have to deal with the taliban? >> well, certainly president biden will have to deal with the taliban. there will not be an agreement. the taliban -- we were told this by one of the commanding generals, way back, 11 years ago when i first came to the armed services committee. he held up his watch and he said the americans have a clock, they have a watch. the taliban do not. they have no time limit. and so we're at a disadvantage right there because, hey, we want to get out and now with only 2500 troops remaining, our presence and our ability to push back on the attacks that are currently going on is severely restricted and president trump has made it absolutely clear in part with his drawdown and also with his statements that america is leaving. so the taliban are going to sit

on their hands, negotiations are going to go slowly, perhaps. perhaps they're bringing more backbone to the negotiations, we don't know. arthel: beyond negotiating, are our remaining troops there in any specific danger that you know of? >> absolutely. absolutely. there have been attacks on american troops. one of the agreements in the agreement that led to the negotiations was that there would be no attacks on americans. that has not been the case. certainly there have been you attacks throughout the country by the taliban. in fact, far more fighting by the taliban in the last year than in the previous years. the good news for the american troops that are there and this may slow down the withdrawal of american troops, is it is winter in afghanistan which does i have the highest mountain ranges in

the world. so it's not going to be easy. the problem will come next season as the new fighting season emerges with the spring and summer. so we'll see. biden's going to be in a very, very difficult position. his leverage has been given away by president trump when he ordered the drawdown to just 2500 troops. now, the remaining troops -- first of all, withdrawal is always an extremely dangerous process. now, the remaining troops that are there, will they be sufficient to be able to protect themselves? big question for which we don't have an answer. will they be pulling back into just a handful or even a couple of locations? again, we don't know. i will say this. the new acting secretary of defense on november 14th basically said we're not going to reduce troops. three days later, he turned around and said we're reducing troops to 2500, following a

tweet from the president. so it's really the president, not the military planners or the negotiators that are setting the pace here. it is the president who apparently wants to complete one of his campaign promises without regard in my view -- without regard to the potential problems. that rocket attack was by isis. remember isis? they are there. as is al-qaida. so we better be very careful here. arthel: congressman, i thank you for breaking it down for us. i would love to talk to you more of. i'll have to invite you to come back again if you will. thank you, sir. >> that will be a pleasure. thank you. arthel: thank you. eric. eric: back at home, cities and states ramping up restrictions ahead of the thanksgiving holiday as coronavirus outbreaks threaten to overwhelm hospitals in some states. they need to hear the warning from the cdc. the former director here on that, on how you and your family can stay safe for the holidays.

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arthel: the cdc is urging americans not to travel this year for thanksgiving. meantime, governors and mayors across the country are also ramping up health and safety restrictions ahead of the holiday. alex hogan is live in new york city with more details. alex. >> reporter: arthel, while the cdc is asking people not to travel, for those who say they will anyway, the cdc is asking them to quarantine before, to wear masks, to have celebrations outside, and a even bring their own food. many families are preparing for smaller scale celebrations this year, with zoom announcing today that it will eliminate its time limit for free meetings on the holiday. trip em a projected that 50 million americans will travel, down 10% from 2019. after a difficult year, some

argue they don't plan on celebrating alone. >> i plan on having my normal family get-together with my normal family. my people, my family, can make their own decisions on what they do on thanksgiving. >> reporter: governors urging their residents to respond to the outbreak. minnesota ordering that people only celebrate within their household, kentucky limiting gatherings to eight people, from two homes. oregon and rhode island calls for a two-week freeze on most nonessential businesses and new mexico imposing a stay at home order for two weeks. today new regulations in the nfl, everyone on all 32 teams will need to test negative before entering facilities, they'll need to wear masks inside, attend virtual meetings and take meals to go. the nfl says it's reduced in-person contact by 50%. players can no longer attend gatherings outside of facilities which includes thanksgiving this week and with some restrictions

around the country lasting until next month, this has some people skipping ahead, already thinking of what this means for holiday celebrations like hon cay or christmas -- hanukkah or christmas. arthel. arthel: i may not be home for christmas. you know the song says i'll be home for christmas. might not happen. alex hogan in new york city. thank you. have a thanksgiving so hopefully we can enjoy a christmas holiday. i would very much so beg of you to keep yourself and your family safe. eric: that's louisiana's house representative, ted james, earlier here on the fox news channel. he has advice for the holidays. he was infected with covid-19. he was in the hospital. he said at one point he didn't think he would survive. so how should you and your family celebrate thanksgiving with the coronavirus pandemic raging and spreading stronger in some parts of the country? dr. tom freeden is here, former

director of the centers for disease control. representative james' plea is so heart-felt and it's a warning for all of us. what do you recommend as thanksgiving approaches? >> we're all so sick and tired of this virus but unfortunately it is spiraling out of control in most of the country and getting together, traveling is a formula for problems. when people travel, the virus travels. and this thanksgiving could be the super bowl of super spreading events. that's why we say better to have a zoom thanksgiving than icu christmas. but if you do have to get together with others, the three things i'd say is fewer people, more masks and more fresh air. the fewer people that are there, the less likely it will spread. more masks, less spread, more fresh air, less preed. eric:spread.eric: what should ? 50 million or so of us travel but you're talking about keeping masks on during -- except for

when you're eating or drinking. some states as we heard from alex hogan limit the household just to the people who you're living with now. what happens if college students come back from college? they can't quarantine for 14 days or military members. your best advice, as hard, as emotionally difficult this is for families not to see grandma and grandpa, not to have your cousins and uncles and aunts over, that's really what you recommend? >> unfortunately, yes. i mean, thanksgiving is a beloved holiday but this year it's a terrible time to get a lot of people together indoors from different places. that's a formula for ramping up spread and we want to spread cheer and celebration. we don't want to spread the virus. if we work together we can keep the virus down to lower levels. you can zoom in people who you wouldn't have been able to meet with in person. so it's a silver lining. we don't like this kind of

limitation but that's what the virus is causing because we're seeing hospitals all over the country beginning to get overwhelmed with the number of cases. there are more people in the hospital from covid today than ever before in this country. eric: i was going to ask about -- well, do things. what about outdoors. some parts of the country, down south, in california, it's warmer, not as cold as up in maine or the northeast. having a thanksgiving outdoors, is that okay? and let me ask you about negative tests. you've written about the false comfort that a negative test can have. we saw that, the super spreader event at the rose garden in the white house. all those people were tested before the event and they came up negative or they won't allowed in there and lo and behold a whole bunch of people came down with infections. >> right. first, outdoors is actually great, if you can meet outdoors, the risk is way, way lower of spread. now, you're going to have to go

in to use the facilities or go somewhere else. it's what you do before and a after that outdoors meal that may be a risk. but meeting together outdoors really healthy. if you're really, really tightly packed together, then more concerning and you'd want to wear a mask when you can. but the issue of tests that you raise is very important. there's many important reasons to be tested but if you think you can test and then let your guard down, you're really wrong. because you can test negative in the morning and be highly infectious in the afternoon. in fact, there was a very good study done of a summer camp in wisconsin. kid came in, tested negative in the morning. the next day, infected a whole bunch of people, over 1 4-7b 10e got infected at the camp. you can't replace safety measures with testing. you have to wear a mask, watch your distance, wash your hands. we wish we didn't have to do these things but the virus is still here.

even though we're sick and a tired of the virus, it's not tired of making us sick and i really am scared. we're looking at 70,000 people hospitalized today. and if you have millions of families getting together, moving around the country, spending hours together, spreading the virus, you're going to see that number grow over 100,000. you're going to see hospitals unable to manage. people unable to do their routine surgery and care and really a very dreary christmas. we will not have a merry christmas if we were not much more careful for thanksgiving. eric: dr. tom freeden with a dose of reality. if you can zoom, please zoom. if you cancel, actually cancel. you can have two thanksgivings, maybe in a couple years when we get through this. dr. tom freedman, thank you and thank you for your work on behalf of our country. >> thank you. arthel: when we come back we're going to find out how santa

claus is going to try to keep it safe for this holiday season. your journey requires liberty mutual. they customize your car insurance so you only pay for what you need. wow. that will save me lots of money. this game's boring. only pay for what you need. liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty. can you tell me the story again? every family has their own unique story. give your family the chance to discover theirs this holiday season, with ancestry.

arthel: meeting santa claus is a holiday tradition for millions of families, but there won't be any hugging or sitting on santa's lap this year because of

the coronavirus pandemic. but stores and malls are finding creative ways to keep the holiday magic alive. ann wyatt little from our affiliate fox 46 in charlotte has more. >> reporter: this year, sees you through this magic shield. >> it's a little different in 2020. >> you sure look pretty all dressed up. >> reporter: before visiting with the mvp of the holidays, santa's elf checks temperatures. >> you'll socially distance, six feet apart and you see santa and pick up the free photo. >> reporter: these brothers count wait. for the 9-year-old, this visit stands out from years past. >> we got to see behind the glass and i got to see him, how he was in a mask with a face mask, and i don't have to touch him and he can feel safe. >> i'm excited this opportunity came about. unfortunately with covid, being around all of us, we done think we would have the opportunity to

come see santa. and being that they're taking the precautions that i think are necessary, it made us feel safe. >> reporter: in between appointments, santa's san at the say-- cant at sanitizing squad o work. they get as close as they can. >> i want anything that he gives me for christmas. >> i give him anything. >> reporter: the smiles are priceless. >> the smile on the parents' face as well, that's what this is all about. >> reporter: despite the distance and the shield, the magic of christmas remains. >> ho, ho, ho, merry christmas. arthel: merry christmas, santa, that was ann wyatt little reporting from charlotte. we'll be right back. are just si, then i'm not a real idaho potato farmer. genuine idaho potatoes not just a side dish anymore.

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the wild either later tonight or on monday. little rocky. had much hitch a ride. >> i was so concerned about him that makes me happy. jon scott up next. jon: president trump participates in a virtual g20 summit as coronavirus pandemic continues to worsen and cases worldwide. good evening i'm jon scott and this is the "fox report." the pharmaceutical company pfizer applied for emergency approval of its covid vaccine. as infections and hospitalizations surge across the u.s., if the fda gives the green light alex azar says doses could be shipped out within 24 hours. but president trump is slamming the drug maker accusing the company of sabotaging his reelection bid as the trump campaign tries tove