♪♪ now ♪♪ raymond: join laura and me for hilarious christmas special and new year's eve coverage from new orleans, a blessed and joyful christmas to you. >> americans will be submitting the most expensive christmas in decades, the president's own staff appears to be set up. we have a report on a postholiday exodus. >> you haven't even signed a contract yet. >> we have no concern about the contract being finalized, we are just working to finalize the contract.

benjamin: they are preparing for christmas covid surge as americans are left scrambling. a nightmare on one of the busiest travel days of the year, hundreds of flights canceled across the country. what you need to know before heading home for the holidays. ♪♪ it's beginning to look a lot like christmas ♪♪ everywhere you go ♪♪ take a look and listening once again ♪♪ with candy canes ♪♪ benjamin: good morning. merry christmas eve. griff:you are looking at the gorgeous christmas tree in new york on fox square in today you get the boy band version of "fox and friends first," we share an office in washington and we are

bring it to you, the first time we had all mail hosting "fox and friends first". benjamin: a very modern show. there was no one i would rather be doing it with venue. it will be a fun two hours. it is christmas eve. a lot of news to get to. let's get started. griff:americans are celebrating the most expensive christmas in decades as inflation is soaring to close out 2021. benjamin: biden taking flak for bold games about handling covid as the virus surges. >> we are scrambling to keep up with higher prices compared to a year ago. we've not seen that kind of inflation in decades. the white house meantime is scrambling to keep up with covid tests, through the roof right

now. >> the president wouldn't have taken the steps in september and october if we weren't aware we needed to have increased supply but also there wasn't the demand in june for it. >> a recording vanity fair claims the white house rejected a proposal weeks ago to distribute home test kits before the holidays was another report in the new york times is the announcement of new tests came without having a completed contract to buy them. >> why are you promising 500 million tests next month if you haven't signed a contract? >> we have no concern about the contract being finalized, we are just working to finalize the contract, we announced it two days ago. we don't see any issue for getting that done. >> reporter: the republican critics have questioned the president's priorities on drug therapies to school closures.

>> president biden using science were benefiting and ignoring science where he could be helping people when it doesn't fit his narrative. he has had a vaccine only strategy to the detriment of millions of people. who could be benefiting from so many other things? >> reporter: for white house staffers it may be a final christmas with the administration was reporting politico says west wing morale is low and look for a number of the partners in the weeks ahead. merry christmas eve. benjamin: and to you too. here is kayleigh mcenany and victor davis hanson reporting on turmoil in the white house. >> it is not productive for any younger staff or to leave, you need a team that is rolling forward for the american people. i hate to see this happening for biden like it did for trump but it does indicate something going

on here. talking the politico playbook, a lot of the staffers feel left out and marginalized. >> then there is covid. they were stable and improving when trump left office and biden unwisely said they are terrible and i'm going to change things. he didn't just leave them alone and backed off a former policies that were working. benjamin: that politico playbook goes on to say the staff in the white house lining up there in for the year one anniversary looking for other jobs. one of them said it is hypocritical the president who built his brand on empathy has policies that fly in the face of that. we are learning more from inside the white house. it doesn't sound good and think back to kamala harris's departure. her comms director and a couple others, not good news out of the white house.

>> reporter: it is not and if i learned anything covering the white house in washington in the last 200 years it is when things go bad, your team is down, doesn't bode well for the staff's morale. the fact the vice president's office is seeing this exodus already, calling it below 30% in that poll a month ago and now you're looking at the team that will come in and right the wrongs they believe the previous administration made on the economy and those two specific issues, cornerstone of the biden campaign. the president's poll numbers continue to slide. benjamin: you wonder, foolish ship together again. another big story, holiday travel descending into chaos as hundreds of flights canceled across the country.

griff: the omicron ferry and jamming of celebration planned. marianne rafferty. >> merry christmas eve. it will not be so merry for travelers, hundreds of flights due to cruise shortages, crowded airports around the country signaling the holiday rush is generally on but the lack of planes to get them to their destinations, many airlines citing staff shortages due to covid, 121 flights canceled, 6% of overall flight schedule, releasing a statement, with gatherings with the family, doctor anthony fauci reminding everyone to take precautions with large groups get together. >> going to a large gathering,

30, 50 people, with the status of individuals. those are the kind of functions in the context of covid. that you do not want to go to. >> reporter: despite that morning, st. patrick's cathedral in new york says it services are full speed ahead. some good news, the fight against covid. a new pill from pharmaceutical company merck just received fda approval and has shown promise in preventing death, but not for everyone. >> >> should not begin the, we have pfizer, does not have the concern of mutagenesis. we need more of the drug. >> the home treatment follows pfizer is the second hill granted fda approval. the builder meant to be started within 5 days of developing

symptoms and risk of severe disease when no other options are available. griff: thank you very much. house democrat from texas says vice president harris's work is falling short. congressman henry cuellar says when he offered advice in june she never returned his call. she was tasked with the job, we are going to move on to other folks that work on this issue. harris did not visit the border into after being tapped by biden to work on the root causes of the migration crisis. cuellar says when she did come she visited el paso, hundreds of miles from the heart of the problem in the rio grande valley sector. i cover the border extensively and the fact that you have this

entrenched democrat border, is fully more aware of what is happening on the border offering advice to the vice president, that does not bode well for how seriously she's taking this crisis. benjamin: congressman cuellar released a video showing this early on. the biden administration keeping the media away them. vice president harris did not respond. the biden administration, you can get hold of their office and respond, return your call, the vice president's office doesn't do that. griff: we saw that he looks forward to working with the vice

president, writing the ship on the tension between the two democrats. one thing is for sure. whether the office picked up the phone behind the scenes and called cuellar and said what is with the shame you are throwing, there is no plan, no leadership, no indication vice president harris, the numbers right now are unbelievable. this is the part of the year the migration should slow down. it is skyrocketing. i was just there last week and it is showing no signs of slowing down. benjamin: no one will qualify to talk about it. guilty on all counts. kim potter is convicted of manslaughter charges for freely shooting daunte wright during a

traffic stop earlier this year. garrett tenney is following this trial from minneapolis. >> every emotion you could imagine running through your body at that moment, let out a yelp. >> reporter: the mother of andre a right to describe her reaction when the judge read the jury verdict, the former brooklyn center police officer who shot and killed her son. >> the state of minnesota find the defendant guilty. >> reporter: potter, 26 year veteran of the force, faces first and second degree manslaughter -- potter and other officers attempted to arrest an outstanding warrant for weapons possession charge. the former officer said she mistakes her handgun for her taser. after being found guilty on both counts potter was led away in handcuffs. >> they did what they could, but the jury decided a line was crossed into the criminal realm unfortunately for kim potter. demonstrators reacted to the

verdict with cheers, many praising the outcome calling for more accountability when it comes to cases involving law enforcement. >> must move the barriers that allow law enforcement to hide behind them when they break the law. >> reporter: kim potter's sentence will be discovered in february, she's facing 15 years in prison. i am garrett tenney, fox news. griff: the doj announces charges against a teen accused of charging mary kay scanlon at gunpoint. police say four others were also teams and in illinois, she is traumatized after her own carjacking experience. >> i thought they were going to shoot me down.

>> reporter: lightfoot revealing her husband shot at the thieves while she fled and got away. griff: lashing out at state attorney general lakisha james, cuomo's office responded prosecutors will not be charging them in a sexual assault allegation. the intersection of prosecutorial misconduct. the 2019 accident. a criminal charge, with groping a former aide. with the covid 19 vaccine card can land you in jail for your. the governor signing legislation designating falsifiable id as forgery. new york city mayor bill deblasio announcing a scaled back celebration in times square.

the event reducing capacity over the omicron variance, attendees over 5 will be required to show proof of vaccination and all will have to wear a mask. >> a third-grade teacher promises hot chocolate if she could seek a full-court shot. check out what happens next. ♪♪ griff: this video is going viral for the reaction from the kids. it is a division i basketball player for rutgers university, getting the assist in the reindeer outfit. he tweeted out, it warms your house. full disclosure i have children that went, on such a great school.

mike emanuel, and how proud they are of this. benjamin: i wouldn't know how it feels. the hole-in-1 on the golf course or something like this. she has got that but looks like such a love the teacher, you see how this reacts. it is a heartwarming video. you brought it around to everyone in the office and we were all watching it. they keep watching it again. griff: to get in the spirit and put little boy in our hearts. benjamin: we have a jampacked christmas eve show for you this morning. griff: buddy karen jack rumor and prevalent wrinkling graham

and mike huckabee joining us live, don't go anywhere. ♪♪

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visit your nearest xfinity store and see how the switch squad can help you switch and save. get $200 off a new eligible 5g phone when you switch to xfinity mobile. talk with our helpful switch squad at your local xfinity store today. griff: the office of george

gascon, a bail for man arrested of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor. gascon's office justify the move as signing a policy that aims to reduce overcrowding in jail and the judge ultimately set bail at 100,$000. gascon's office denies existing bail be set at 0. high crime plagues america the biden administration making sure criminals will be supported when they get out of prison. the department of justice pledging $100 million taxpayer money to help currently reintegrate and the criminal justice system for reducing recidivism is a key priority for the biden administration. griff: a minneapolis jury hands-down a verdict for ex-cop kim potter on two charges for the death of 20-year-old daunte

wright in april. trial attorney and former prosecutor, merry christmas to you, thank you for taking time to join us early as we get ready for the holidays, very difficult trial watching all of that yesterday. what is your reaction to the verdict? >> my first reaction is this was a deliberation. there was a long deliberation. legal experts like myself were questioning whether or not we were going to get a verdict. went on for four days. 27 hours of deliberation on two counts and it wasn't an entirely complex case. it was a split-second decision by kim potter and the jury took its time, it was a deliberate deliberation and certainly it is tough to look back and criticize it. they were the ones in the court

room, the give the evidence and came out with a tough decision, they were unanimous as they did it. griff: carrying up to 15 years, we will find out what the sentence is. let me ask if you were representing potter would you put her on the stand, what were your thoughts on whether it helped or hurt her? >> hindsight is 20/20. one of the most difficult decisions a couple defense attorney and defendant make at trial. the prosecutor has the burden of proof and the jury is instructed they cannot use a defendant's silence, they can't use it in their deliberations because of presumption of innocence and the right to remain silent. when someone takes the stand it and there is the focus on the defendant themselves.

kim came across as imo joint remorseful, that's number one what she wanted to convey but she had problems in her testimony that i think as a result of this conviction, first off the training. this is a 26-year-old veteran who got on stan and testified she didn't remember her training on the taser. he didn't fire a taser her entire career or remember what she was trained on specific principles at that incident. that is number one. also on the gun versus taser, a 50% difference in weight and we saw two days ago before the verdict jury wanted the gun and there was a problem too. when you have two sides, different colors and weights, problems she had.

griff: here's what jonathan turley said. >> this is a chilling moment for a lot of law enforcement. the jury and most people agree she did not intend to shoot mister wright. her response after the shooting showed that. this was an ambiguous standard, did she consciously disregard the harm in that scene. we have to debate this as a society and whether laws like minnesota should be clarified to make it clear you're not just criminalizing simple negligence, you need something more. benjamin: your reactions what this might mean for law enforcement moving forward. >> my biggest reaction for law enforcement is training. i said it in the last piece, to know the difference between a taser and the gun, they need to be trained in a situation so people do not die.

benjamin: thank you for joining us. have a merry christmas. benjamin: it is 25 after the hour, boston's mayor, against the new vaccine mandates fueled by hatred. shocking comments next. our next guest will should some light on how the sunshine state helped kick off nationwide tradition. ♪♪ have a holly jolly christmas ♪♪ the best time of the year ♪♪ i don't know if there will be snowed

>> 169 marines discharged for refusing to get the covid

vaccine. that includes 66 of this week. marines processing and rejecting nearly all exemption requests. vaccination rate lagging behind other military branches at 94% as of last month. all branches reporting major surge of the omicron variance among troops. boston's mayor implies vaccine mandate protesters chance of usa are based on hatred, fear and confusion. mayor michelle wu saying hearing the demonstrators opposing our policy singing patriotic songs and chanting usa the message was clear that we don't belong here in their eyes. the chance of protest in response to the democrat mayor's mandate for city workers to be vaccinated. she mandated businesses to require customers to be fully vaccinated.

benjamin: the first christmas in america was celebrated in florida. live from the sunshine state, laurel to tell us more, you learn something every day, this is fascinating, you are the expert. who in 1539 first celebrated christmas over here? >> fernando they soto landed in florida in 1539. they started out in the tampa bay area and marched up to what we now know as tallahassee and had a winter encampment throughout the christmas season. and their religious traditions were so important to them, to celebrate mass and their

christmas holiday while they were exploring in florida. benjamin: i imagine there would have been no present or carols, very different kind of christmas to how we know it today. >> some traditions with water today. there would have been a traditional mass. they did sing christmas carols and would have enjoyed a feast. however they wouldn't have had quite the same level of fellowship and leisure we associate with our time with family and modern times. benjamin: what happened to this initial band of people who came over, what happens? >> after the winter and came it in tallahassee they did stand continue to explore early america. it was a very interesting time for the spanish explorers. they encountered florida's

indigenous people and at that time, they were not welcome in our state. in later times in florida history, and developed this in tallahassee. benjamin: if you want to go there, they could syrian enactments. what it would be like him. >> that is exactly right. they have a wonderful living history museum, visitors can actually see enactments of the people who lived during that time, historically accurate structures and how they would have lived and where they would have lived, with history and archaeology, enables us to learn about people who came before us and get a sense of traditions

and values. benjamin: i will take my family down there and the first christmas ever celebrated in 336. thank you for joining us. remember how these traditions started over here. griff: time is 35 after the hour. joe manchin expressing less outrage in a christmas message as democrats head back to the drawing board on the social spending bill. the latest push to get it passed in congress and top republicans are calling out biden for what they say is lack of leadership at home and abroad. congressman buddy carter is one of those republicans who joined us next.

>> reporter: what is happening in your world this morning, vladimir putin demanding a quick response for the demand over ukraine in eastern europe, the conference was about this committee100 russian troops on the ukraine border, he claimed he doesn't want to start a war

and called for a ban and withdrawal of un and nato troops from the east. talks with us and russia begin next month. president biden signed into law a bill that would prohibit influence from that region of china, pass with unanimous bipartisan consent in the senate. the local muslim leagueour population being oppressed and forced into slave labor and work camps after another dismissal of chinese and us diplomats. and other moves against china. the stalls iran nuclear talk next monday. the trump administration pulled out of the deal in 2018. that was aimed at the terror on nuclear program. president biden said he wants to get back in with modifications but negotiators only have a few weeks to reach forward.

iran is close to making a bond. back to benjamin and griff, wish you and all our viewers a merry christmas. happy holiday. benjamin: merry christmas to you, thanks. griff: top republicans criticizing president biden for his failure to anticipate the taliban takeover of afghanistan as well as the omicron variance bread. >> president biden: the buck stops with me. i took the consensus opinion. the consensus opinion is it would not occur, if it occurred until later in the year. covid is spreading so rapidly. it happens overnight. carley: gop congress member buddy carter the thank you for joining us and there we have it, two major big issues, president

biden didn't see, they know their intelligence sources, the cdc director said omicron was clearly on its way. what does this say about the president and his decision. >> no question about it he is ineffective, a week leader, we learned that in afghanistan, he left americans behind enemy lines and witnessing with urban crime, we see it now. his plan is see you later. he wants to send a test after the first of the year. we need to test now. people needed now, not after the first of the year. then this president trying to shame people into taking the vaccine. calling it unpatriotic is absurd. either that or he is trying to scare them telling them it is going to be a long deadly winter.

let's get real. this is weak ineffective leadership on the part of president biden. griff: let me show johns hopkins expert says on the president's home testing kit. they say, quote, that is not a plan. is the hope. those tests come in january and february. that can have an impact but over 10 to 12 months, i'm not sure what kind of impact it is going to have. an epidemiologist at johns hopkins. we take what they say with some seriousness. do you believe the president addressing this is going to get worse? >> absolutely. his past performance is any indication of his future performance, that is what we should expect. it is just going to get worse. this is true. these tests are not going to do us any good.

we need those tips now. that is important. benjamin: i think about vice president harris saying she wouldn't trust any vaccine donald trump is behind yet here we are today with the administration pushing hard for vaccines to be taken by everyone. what do you think this means? what will they do in the lead up to the midterms? surely they will try to change something. >> you are also right that they are the ones, president biden and kamala harris politicized this vaccine. this is a result of operation warp speed which will be one of the greatest medical achievements in our lifetime, they came up with a safe and effective vaccine in that short appear go of time but it was

harris, it was biden who said they would not trust the vaccine that was developed under the trump administration. now we've got president biden and anthony fauci who needs to be fired, people don't have confidence in him, he needs to resign, be fired, he is telling us we have to an invite people to christmas gatherings, to wear masks on airplanes forever, this is getting worse by the minute. ashley: thank you for getting up and joining us. all i for christmas is a bulldog win on new year's day. go dogs. have a good one. it has been an invisible year in the world of politics, to hunter biden's lavish art shows. benjamin: who is at the top of said's money list, the most memorable levels of 2021. you don't want to miss it.

♪♪ he sees you when you are sleeping under he knows when you are awake

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when you switch to xfinity mobile. talk with our helpful switch squad at your local xfinity store today. when traders tell us how to make thinkorswim even better, we listen. like jack. he wanted a streamlined version he could access anywhere, no download necessary. and kim. she wanted to execute a pre-set trade strategy in seconds. so we gave 'em thinkorswim web. because platforms this innovative, aren't just made for traders - they're made by them. thinkorswim trading. from td ameritrade. benjamin: joe manchin calling for understanding after being slammed by fellow democrats for rejecting the president expended agenda. >> looking for a greater understanding of one another that brings our nation together.

benjamin: they are looking to get the agenda passed last year looking for cuts to the massive spending package they could bring manchin on board, not saying whether he might revisit the bill next year. griff: our next guest brought his own political money list with some suggestions to who deserves local this year. tj mccormick joins us. merry christmas, thank you for coming on. >> i always believed 364 days of fun might be worth taking your chances but there are some getting that lump of coal. let's start with the first person on your list, you may recognize him. he found quite. >> now is not the time to waste hundreds of millions of dollars

on the recall ever that is nothing but a partisan power grab. >> california governor -- >> is getting cold because he is running california, formerly golden state into the ground. gavin newsom absolutely is a train wreck. the only reason the port of los angeles is moving again is one of those containing your supply for hair product. this guy is about as low from as it gets and when we used to think of california we would think of orange groves and golden shores. we think about san fran for example, the streets are an open portal party with cable cars which is terrible and to go in california has a chance to get rid of him but i took his word

that a man was a white supremacist, happens to be a black man and larry elder. they had a good chance that stuck with gavin. >> traveling like santa from west coast to east coast, our next call recipient in this headline for the new york times which says how hunter biden's firm helped secure for the chinese. why did hunter make the list? >> hunter made the list because he should have taken a year off. this guy has not only not only uses family name to steal shady deals, he dated his brother, his sister in law. this is the worst guy in the world. we all have friends and family we see over the holidays who objected lives and questionable pasts. hunter heard the story hold that. just the fact that he still in the periphery, didn't give them

a break to become president, the all-time body list, all foreign. >> over body list moving to the third recipient on your list, the governor of new york. take a listen. >> i was elected by the people of new york. i'm not going to resign. i did nothing wrong period and i'm not resigning. my resignation will be effective in 13 days. >> 100 reason cuomo should get a lot of coal but specifically say -- >> what i'm not a i know it. what i do wrong around here, i look like every sheepish dog on tick-tock who chewed up the living room. this guy as more and more women came out, got tougher and uglier and had no moral compass.

and we finally got rid of them and we take new york state back. griff: we shall see. the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. >> i said point blank i can't be objective when it comes to my family. i never reported on the scandal. when it happened i tried to be there for my brother. i'm not an advisor. i'm a brother. >> we knew it was you all along. chris cuomo, you know what this shows, not just chris cuomo who went beyond the bounds of journalistic ethics to help his brother, it shows a picture

from, the mainstream media as a culture of enabling bad behavior and chris cuomo just happened to be fair and is gone from the other network because they found out and we found out and they had no choice but to do the right thing. griff: have a safe and wonderful holiday. benjamin: several airlines canceling flights which could be a problem for those traveling this christmas eve. everything you need to know plus a jampacked 5:00 hour. doctor janette nesheiwat, franklin graham and mike huckabee, don't go anywhere. ♪♪ let it snow ♪♪ let it snow ♪♪ let it snow ♪♪

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>> friday december 20 fourth. americans will be celebrating the most expensive christmas in decades thanks to biden inflation, even the president's own seem to be set up, the report on a postholiday exodus. >> promising 5 million beds with the contract. >> we have no concern about the contract being finalized. is working to finalize the contract. >> the biden administration, with poor planning, what that is saying as americans are scrambling for 10.