means? how someone has gotten better in their life. >> glow up. >> my 22-year-old is bringing phone calls back, refuses to text me, he only calls. >> you've done well. >> role model for the entire generation. >> we have all glown up. now here is "america reports." >> fox news alert, some of the 20,000 migrants waited weeks on the mexican side of the u.s. border for title 42 to expire are making their way across the southern border. >> anita: new york post front page claims they know they will get in and not be sent back by the biden administration should they be detained by u.s. border agents. is this spiralling out of control. texas congressman tony gonzalez

and tom homan are here to weigh in. but first. >> our luggage is missing, mia. >> canceled southwest, hopefully will get a refund. >> i have three kids. >> gillian: stranded travelers are begging southwest air to get its act together as the holiday travel meltdown is stretching on yet another day, flights going nowhere. welcome to "america reports." gillian turner in washington. great to be with you. >> anita: always great to spend two hours with you, gillian. john and sandra have the day off. southwest customers are not only struggling, but a good chunk of the hundreds of thousands delayed passengers have no idea where their luggage is. they are desperate to find bags with crucial medicine and baby gear. >> gillian: those hopes hoping to be rebooked today, not having

much luck. more than 2300 southwest flights so far have been canceled already. the airline says the trouble is not going to end most likely until early next week. >> anita: and the big wigs blame the blizzard for the travel chaos, critics point out this summer, transportation secretary pete buttigieg promised would be sorted out in time for the holidays. >> did you think this issue will be sorted in time for the holidays? >> i think it's going to get better for the holidays, we are pressing airlines to deliver better service. >> anita: mike tobin is live at chicago's midway airport, one of southwest's largest hubs where you've been for days, mike. anything looking better there today? >> you know what, it is looking better. we could be looking at the beginning of the end with this update. southwest airlines has announced

they will resume normal operations tomorrow with minimal delays. it does not mean all of the ugliness is gone. if you look behind me, you have people trying to get their luggage, winding the line around to the baggage service office, but as we pan around bag claim here, the big ugly pile of luggage is gone. it does not mean the bags are renighted with their owners, we have it from some customers they are stored in an airplane hangar. 2,471 flights canceled. of those, 2361 are southwest flights. but if you move forward to tomorrow, with the announcement that southwest is going to resume normal operations, you only have 39 southwest flights canceled. through all the chaos, you have management at southwest offering another apology. >> my personal apology is the first step of making things right after many plans changed and experiences fell short of

your ex p-- expectations of us. for now, we are focused on restoring reliability and level of customer experience we expect of ourselves and you expect from us. >> and some of those people who have been stranded in cheap hotels and trying to get rental cars can now start trying to make their way home, southwest announced they will resume normal operations. still, a lot of people are worn out from the meltdown of winter storm 2022. >> my medicine, charger, my -- everything that, my perfume, all my personal stuff is in the suitcase. and some presents, too, for christmas. >> so my concern is really, one of my bags is all christmas gifts, i want that back. >> it's been a nightmare, really has been. no doubt about it. >> and we really don't have any

figures as far as how many bags were lost total, how many bags tracked down, how many in the wrong city and reunited with original owners but big announcement that southwest will resume normal operations tomorrow, at least their planning to, and hoping to do so with minimal or no delays. guys, back to you. >> anita: for anyone watching, mike, you gave them a giant christmas gift. minimal delays, normal operations, hallelujiah. thank you for the live report. appreciate it. >> my house, and then my car is, it's over here, and of course, the snowbanks, again, they are -- they are as tall as me. >> when that guy knocked on the door i realized his hands was almost frozen. >> we are using a flashlight, head lamps, we have a candle but have not brought it out yet.

>> gillian: people stranded in buffalo, new york are busy digging out from the blizzard over the christmas weekend. part of the blast of arctic weather that has killed at least 74 people across 12 states. 39 of the victims were in the buffalo area. temperatures there are finally expected to thaw over the coming days. that, though, is raising new concerns about flooding. robert ray is in buffalo. how are folks holding up? >> yeah, gillian, it's still very fluid situation here right now, you take a look over here at these front loaders, trying to get the feet of snow off of people's, well, streets and sidewalks and you see they are doing a pretty good job right now. this street this morning, you could barely even walk on it. it was full of 2, 3, 4 feet of snow and ice and they have made really good progress. it takes a long time to clear a street, anywhere from an hour to

two hours, sort of a choreographed orchestra of snow removal as you see. unfortunately, officials just announced 39 people have lost their lives here. the temperatures are in the 40s, moving not 50s here in the next couple days and what that is going to create potentially is flooding into basements and on roads, not expected to be catastrophic like the blizzard that came in a week ago. unfortunately this area has seen over 100 inches of snow since mid november. this past blizzard, over 50 inches, and the people that live here, they are a hearty bunch. they are used to the tough winters, used to snow piles. but i've got to say, everybody we talked to here on the streets today, frustrated the fact they have been cooped up, they are running out of food, medicine, supplies, some people can't get to work, but now that the roads are being cleared, all of that is being changed. over 450 of these big snow

machines out. national guard is still going door to door doing wellness checks on folks, and yet the work continues as you see here in south buffalo a few miles from downtown, gillian. >> gillian: robert ray in buffalo, thank you. for continuing coverage, fox weather by downloading the app for free at foxweather.com and scan the q.r. code on the screen. >> anita: fox news alert now from the southern border, title 42 remains in place for now. while the legal back and forth continues. some migrants making clear they have no plans to wait and see how it all shakes out. take a look at today's new york post. the cover featuring one of the many migrants who had been waiting in mexico for title 42 to end now vowing to get into the united states any way they can. adding even more strain for the border patrol which is already

stretched thin. border sources tell griff jenkins in the last 90 days, a new record was set for the number of migrant encounters. now averaging nearly 7,000 encounters every single day. texas republican congressman tony gonzalez is standing by to weigh in on all of this. but first, matt is live at the epicenter at the southern border in eagle pass, texas. matt, what has the border been like there since title 42 was extended? >> well, anita, over the past couple of days we have seen a consistent flow of smaller migrant groups arriving here. one behind me right now, they are standing by and waiting to be processed by border patrol. you know, sadly, there are very young children in this group as we see so often, a short while ago we heard one of them crying and you have to imagine what these humans are going through, young adults or young parents who are bringing their children across the river, potentially putting their life at risk and

then arriving in this country to be booked by u.s. border patrol. and here in eagle pass we have seen perhaps the most significant noticeable bolstering of the border here. there are large cargo containers that were installed and now yesterday and today we have seen razor wire on top of those cargo containers. governor abbott tells us it's part of texas improving the physical deterrent along the border, and in el paso, two miles of fencing there. and new video of another smuggling bust. 18 illegal migrants, including a child, smuggled inside a tractor-trailer. the driver was arrested. every day people from all over the country are coming down here to the border to smuggle humans for quick cash. and shocking video in edwards

county, 50 miles north of the border, a group of illegal immigrants trying to break into a home there. she called border patrol but the migrants took off before agents arrived. the woman says this is the third time migrants have tried to break into her home and she has since spent $13,000 in added security. anita. >> anita: so many issues at the border. matt finn, live in eagle pass. thank you, matt. >> gillian: republican texas congressman tony gonzalez, his district includes el paso, and straddles hundreds of miles at the southern border. this is a map showing the location of the ten soft side tent facilities dhs is putting up, one is in your district. and it will have the capacity to hold 1,000 people while they are processed, but it's not like el paso is sitting around here, you

have migrants in churches, convention center 1,000 people, is the tent going to make a difference? >> you know, the tent is only going to encourage more illegal immigration. almost two years ago i hosted kevin mccarthy in el paso, and one of the things we visited was the processing center there. it's a hard processing center that can house 1,040 people. we saw some footage of the nearly 5,000 people in there now. two years ago that was a brand-new facility, and at that time they told us you know, this will likely never be filled up but just in case we want to have the capacity. i see no difference with the soft-sided facilities. the only way this ends is not adding more capacity to the problem. that only adds the number of people coming over illegally. you have to have enforcement. and this starts with remain in mexico, and repatriation

flights, you fly them back to their country of origin. until that happens, the administration is only adding fuel to the fire. >> gillian: you mentioned the remain in mexico policy, biden administration, according to border experts is not in a bind here. they have readily available policy options, tom homan told us earlier in the week he thinks the remain in mexico policy should be immediately reinstated. rep henry cuellar, a democrat, pointed to title 8, favored by former president obama. what do you think is the best policy remedy available to the biden administration right now, if you could pick what would this look like? >> gillian, you bring up a good point. essentially the biden administration's history is when they lose a court case, they essentially sideline that program, and while it does not go away, they don't use it. so, this is one aspect that congress needs to do is ensure that cbp is using title 42 and every tool in their toolbox.

to me it's simply, you know, people that do not qualify for asylum have to be sent back. until that happens, you are only going to see more and you do that by reinstating some trump policies at work. pacer program was one of them, meaning you have immigration judges on the border, people get their cases heard in days, not years, and if they do not qualify, they get sent back to asylum. if that does not happen this is what we are starting to see in el paso, people are illegally crossing, they are going to the organizations, nongovernmental organizations and faith-based areas and they are getting sanctuary. what does that do? that encourages more people. literally thousands of venezuelans on the juarez side. if that happens, those people are just going to be continuing to cross illegally, us not knowing who is coming into the country at all. >> gillian: i want to change gears for a second while i have you. a new report out from the pentagon, this is confirmed,

their own information, shows us that u.s. military installations that have been housing afghan evacuees have sustained $260 million in damage, all the damage is unrepairable. eight bases in total housing these folks in states across the country from texas to wisconsin, virginia, new jersey. what do you know about this? >> i represent fort bliss in el paso, and this crisis does not come without a cost. this is part of the administration needing to get ahead of the problem. throwing $800 million in fema to me only crea aids a slush fund. so congress has to make sure the funds are used appropriate. and make sure the military bases are not taking the brunt of this migrant crisis. >> gillian: sir, we have to leave it there. thanks much for joining us, appreciate it. >> thank you. >> anita: gillian, the biden administration to soon require a

negative covid test for travelers entering the u.s. from china. but former president trump was called racist for imposing travel restrictions on china just three years ago. so what really has changed here? dr. jeanette in addition -- joins us. >> and george santos admitted to lying to american voters during his campaign. we have the low down on that coming up next. >> one thing to lie about working at goldman sachs but big questions where his money comes from and if he fabricated information on federal forms, that's a much more serious thing.

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>> gillian: state and federal prosecutors are launching

investigations into congressman elect george santos. the new york republican admitted to fabricating key details of his past professional work, religion. now "the new york post" report claims his mother was a 9/11 victim during the attacks, she passed away 15 years later. prosecutors in nassau county are looking into numerous false claims from santos. they are looking into his campaign and personal finances. tom bevin will join us to weigh in. >> anita: new rules from travelers entering the u.s. from china. regardless of nationality, you have to show a negative covid test to get into the u.s. from the communist country. of course, it was just three years ago that critics blasted then president trump as racist and xenophobic for imposing the

same sort of restrictions. let's bring in fox news medical contributor. dr. nesheiwat. i want to ask you about the new restrictions, the covid tests that travelers have to take coming into the u.s. from china and as i mentioned, president trump had restrictions for travelers from china. he was called a racist. do you think this is a good idea to have people take a covid test before they come in? >> so, you know, definitely can help but covid is still going to come to the u.s. from any country because nothing is 100%. even if you test 48 hours before departure, i've had patients that tested negative on a monday and on tuesday they tested positive. it can change in a matter of hours. so it can help but i don't think it's going to be 100% foolproof but they are having a massive outbreak in china right now, so

anything that could help prevent the spread, you know, is reasonable to take a look at. >> anita: take a look at some numbers out of china. we have a couple of graphs to show you. these are the daily covid cases in china. as you can see, there was a spike, kind of went down, another spike and now sort of tapering off. now let's take a look at the daily covid deaths there. it kind of goes along the same sort of chart, you know, you had a little bit more than it went up bit, then a huge spike, and now tapered off. are you worried about covid in china in terms of new and more serious strains coming to the u.s., or are these strains being weakened over time? >> that's a good question. i don't think there are any new strains that we are aware of right now. it is a possibility, of course, there is not a lot of transparency coming out of china right now. we believe it's the bf7 variant.

we think because of the cold winter holidays, it's normal to see an increase in the number of respiratory viruses, covid, flu, rsv. but in china specifically, they have the measures where they had strict lockdowns and travel restrictions so many people in the population did not have the opportunity for natural immunity, and even with vaccine immunity, their vaccine, it's not as efficacious and did not protect as well as ours do, and even if it did, it does not last for a long period of time. over there, they have a large population of seniors ill, losing their lives and a shortage of icu beds, completely overwhelmed, they don't have the therapeutics and the resources we have, they have a weak covid infrastructure, and could that end up in a new variant, it's a possibility but we expect that, and i think we are prepared for that here in the united states if it does come our way.

>> anita: ok, that's good news, and we are lucky we have a plethora of therapeutics and also vaccines stronger than the ones in china. so, we do have that to rely on. dr. nesheiwat, thank you for your insight today. >> gillian: disney parks may be the happiest places on earth, but some visitors ain't feeling it. reports of brawls like this one you are about to see break out are happening at disney theme parks this week in both florida and california. the mouse house is issuing a rare warning. reminding visitors about what can happen if folks make mickey mad. >> anita: russia and iran becoming buddy-buddy, and it has officials here scrambling to break up the union of u.s. foes. who does the biden administration need to do? former special assistant to george w. bush michael allen gives his take on that next.

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>> anita: fox news alert, biden administration facing a new problem in russia's war on ukraine as it scrambles to stop iran from supplying deadly drones. some officials are reportedly convinced the two u.s. foes are building a new alliance. this as russia launches the biggest wave of missile strikes in weeks targeting ukraine's energy infrastructure. michael allen, former special assistant to president george w. bush is standing by to give analysis, but first we go live to nate foy in kyiv with the situation on the ground there. nate, good to see you. how did ukraine's air defense hold up during this morning's

latest attack? >> anita, even before the ukrainians start using the patriot missile defense system, the air defense is working quite well. they say 69 cruise missiles were launched, only 15 got through, and all 11 iranian made drones were shot down but there is damage to infrastructure and two people were killed. this is the eighth airstrike since october, and they happen almost every week, just as crews restore power they get hit again and again. in kyiv, 40% of people are without electricity, 18 homes were hit including one we found shortly after the strike. missiles came in this morning, two men were inside this home and you see the effects of the missile strike, a massive crater where the home has fallen into

it, massive damage across the yard. a burned out car next to emergency workers who are ensuring there is no further threat to the public here. and unbelievably, anita, the two men inside the home are ok. also today look at this. a massive fire at an energy facility in kyiv, 90% of people in lviv lost power as a result of the strike. belarus claims a ukrainian missile landed on its territory. lukashenko has been informed, many will watch his response to see if belarus gets dragged deeper into the conflict because of that. russia is accused of shelling the recently liberated city of kherson. they say russia shelled a

hospital injuring two people, two days after they hit a maternity hospital there. >> anita: so awful, you mentioned so many people without power, 40% of people in kyiv without power. how are the people keeping warm? >> a lot of people are burning wood, that's all they can do, and the tolerance you see from the ukrainian people is stunning. just this morning when we were covering the missile strike, we spoke with a neighbor who came out, i was shocked at how little clothing he was wearing. i thought he must have been so cold but he had such a great attitude and the strength and desire to be happy that you see in these ukrainian people in spite of such suffering is so inspiring. >> anita: nate foy on the ground in kyiv. thank you for bringing us those stories. gillian. >> gillian: michael allen, former special assistant to president george w. bush, and thank you for being with us.

let's start with an increasing alarming alliance between russia and iran. former national security adviser said earlier this week he imagines the russian regime must be humiliated that they're importing weapons from iran. >> iran is a state sponsored terrorism, all over the middle east, trying to kill americans. russians must be humiliated to go hat in hand to get weapons and platforms to fight ukrainians. >> gillian: maybe putin would be humiliated if he had any shame. >> they are in league with china and north korea and opposition to our way of life, freedom and economic openness. but it's one of these new alliances that we are going to have to watch going forward.

i'm worried about what russia will give iran in exchange for all the kamikaze drones they are shipping to russia. certainly it will be more advanced russian military jets, but who knows. diplomatic cover and i'm worried it may be also something eventually to benefit the nuclear program. >> gillian: a break down of some of the weapons iran is supplying, drones, kamikaze drones, short range ballistic missiles, and they say they are on the ground in crimea physically assisting with the attacks. >> it's crazy, irgc, the terrorist wing of the iranian army is on the ground. i agree with the former national security adviser, it's quite a

picture to think of these terror supporters in league with the russians on former ukrainian territory. but i hope over time that our intelligence community is studying these critical components, finding through the complicated supply chain for an iranian drone a choke point, someplace there is a critical technology that we can go to the company and say we need you to stop selling it to either a supplier or directly to the iranians so that we can begin to put this drone program out of business. otherwise this commercially off the shelf type technology is going to spread and it will really be tough for the ukrainians over time to shoot them all down. >> gillian: reporting out this week the biden administration wants to, i don't know, create a mechanism to deter iran from shipping more weapons to russia. is that just like -- there's a lot of hope and no chance.

what can the u.s. do to get in the way of that? >> it's hard to physically get in the way. we would have liked to interdict this in between a part and waterway in between iran and russia, but they have a way to connect by way of the caspian sea, and that definitely does not speak well to our abilities to be able to physically get in the way so there's limited things we can do in short order to help interdict these types of weapons but we have to get smart over time and choke off the supply chain so iran cannot continue to fund and help russia. >> gillian: we talked russia, iran, you mentioned north korea off the top, sounds like a new axis of evil. >> it sure does, and then when you add china, you remember the friendship without limits, this is an alliance of adversaries

opposed to the american way of life, nato, the west we have set up in the post cold war era so we might have freedom and peace. they are threatening that sort of way of life that america has created and it's something i think we have to stay on our toes about and watch the connections between these four countries and try and stop exactly north korea from sending artillery over to russia in what might be one of the latest game changers as we worry about how russia will be able to extend this war throughout 2023. >> gillian: all we need to do is get the taliban involved and there is everybody. >> anita: hard working students at a top virginia high school being punished for success so other students will not feel bad? hard to believe. details on the shocking move parents say is being made in the

name of equity. >> gillian: executives at southwest air have blamed the winter weather for the chaos that has stranded tens of thousands of their passengers for days now, but new accusations from airline workers themselves suggest those southwest big wigs have nobody to blame but themselves. poor management. will anybody ever be held responsible? >> this is completely uncalled for. you know, all the employees are out there doing everything we can. at the end of the day, southwest was not prepared and unfortunately this has been a decade in the making.

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the farmer's dog is changing the way we feed our pets. visit tryfarmersdog.com to see your dogs personalized meal plan. ♪♪ >> anita: wait 'til you hear this one. a new viral tiktok trend has dentists sounding the alarm. #diy dentist is filled with videos of people sharing at home tricks like using a spoon to remove braces or a nail file to shave down teeth. some are creating their own veneers. prompting actual dentists to post their own videos warning of the dangers of botched dental care. you know, gillian, i can't think of anything that i would rather not do myself. i have the biggest fear of going to the dentist in the first place, but i mean, sticking a

spoon in your mouth to remove braces, that sounds dangerous. >> gillian: no thank you, no thank you, i had braces for i don't remember, three years, i'm out. not doing anything that forces me to go to the orthodontist ever again. >> anita: some things you don't look to tiktok for advice on. >> gillian: top ranking high school in virginia is facing backlash from parents. administrators delayed notifying students that received national academic honors, some were told long after they submitted their college applications. >> a million and a half students enter the national merit scholar competition, 50,000 qualify as a national merit scholar, around 3.5%. thomas jefferson high school for science and technology in alexandria, virginia, outside of d.c., one of the top in the

country. a student was not told he was among the nation's top 3% of students. parents were reportedly told teachers dropped off certificates on students' desks, meaning those students missed the opportunity to include that information about being a merit scholar in college applications. >> motivation in the middle of the hard work, i think is a criminal act. i know when i say criminal, just sounds very animated but that is nothing short of that. >> another parent reportedly claims when he confronted a school official he was told the reason that administrators and school officials did not let students know that they made the cut was because they did not want to offend other students and make them feel bad. fairfax county public schools said the delay in notifying national merit scholars was a one time human error in the fall of 2022.

once it came to light, counselors made emails and follow-up calls to the colleges and inferred them, and to suggest a deliberate attempt to withhold information is inaccurate and contrary to the fairfax county public schools. they will investigate the problem, make sure students are notified in a timely manner going forward, gillian. >> gillian: not sure if i'm buying it. david spunt here in washington, thank you. >> you bet. >> anita: a judge granting bond to six people accused of domestic terrorism. it's the latest battle in an ongoing war over a police training center in atlanta. we are going to have that story coming up. >> gillian: plus, inflation over the past year has hit families and businesses hard across the border. one new study finds america's middle class has been hit the hardest. robert wolf has something to say

about that. he will join us next. >> we have seen massive spending in washington, that has driven inflation. it's corrupting families right now.

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>> some of you at home not naming any names might enjoy good scotch. a lot of americans say they plan to give up booze for the first month of the year. they're dubbing it dry january. the alcohol industry says they also expect the trend to continue year round as more people are looking for low alcohol and alcohol-free alternatives. one market analyst is focusing a 29% growth in nonalcoholic consumptions through 2026. the trend is popular with millennials. losers all! no, i'm kidding. my husband gives up alcohol periodically and he says he feels better for it. good for them. >> my husband likes to do the same in january. william la jeunesse, i was chatting with him about it. he says he's going to do dry january. >> more alcohol for me. to each his own. >> moving now. middle income households are

struggling most with inflation. that's according to a new study from the congressional budget office which finds that unlike previous inflation that hit low income families the hardest, this time around it's the middle class feeling the sting while the lowest income families are largely spared. let's bring in robert wolf, former economic adviser to. obama and a fox news contributor. robert, great to have you with us today. this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that the middle class is being hit the hardest. the lower income households did benefit from the pandemic payments. there's plenty of jobs with competitive incomes now. all federal payments. while the middle class people, they didn't get much. the top earners are always going to be okay, right? so what do you think about this? >> so we've been speaking about this for a while. since the pandemic, i've been saying all along, we have a k-shaped economy back then where it lit the lower income and the

middle class hard, the wealthy even better. as we shift to an inflation environment, which is not transitory, it will hit the middle class the hardest. they have the variable expenses like food and gas. lower income is more on a fixed cost basis and the upper income actually has done belter last few years. their purchasing power has gone down with inflation. so this is not surprising. >> yeah. let's bring up some numbers for the month of november to show that inflation is still outpacing wages. inflation up 6.7%. there were some of the costs for the average family. so the middle class is not just treading water. they're under water. what is going to change this? you used to advise president obama. what would you advise president biden about how to change this? >> yeah, a few things. we have to stop talking about

minimum wage going up and start talking about living wages. if you live in a high tax environment, you have to do better than a minimum wage. if you're in the manufacturing sector, we shouldn't be fighting for 15. we should be fighting for $50, $60 an hour. we have to have a competitive middle class and make sure that they get paid for their skill set. they've been to the detriment because these sectors have been hit hard. think about hospitality and service sector. these have been hit the hardest even though their wages have come back. we're not nearly where we need to be based on how much food and gas has appreciated. people think about their weekly costs, for these middle class hard working americans, food and gas have been the hardest hit. this is where the variable pricing takes in to consideration how they spend on

a weekly basis. so this has been really damaging. they also have the most concerns when it comes to elder care and child care. >> okay. robert wolf, thank you for your great insight today. a lot of people want to see the $60 an hour, i bet. thanks for coming in. gillian? >> new at 2:00, federal and state prosecutors dig into new york congressman elect george santos' resume. hill sources say there's growing concern for house republican leader for kevin mccarthy. he has a narrow path to securing the gavel. now they claim desantos scandal could have an impact on his future. tom holman, john wood jr. and phil flynn and more coming up next hour on "america reports." i'm down with rybelsus®. my a1c is down with rybelsus®.

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