agencies, 20 different agencies met together last week at rutgers university to discuss that. it was a meeting called by leaders in new york, pennsylvania, and new jersey. it included representatives from several states and even canada. >> we were trying to do is put again law enforcement executives' heads together to see that we have to operate on a standard platform and protocols from the reporting, from what we're looking for, for thoughts, to detect and mitigate drones. >> so since mid november the mysterious drone sightings have been reported in 11 states including new york. aside from a collection of possibly unauthorized drones in new jersey in the middle of last month, they haven't found anything irregular since. meanwhile federal authorities continue to insist that there is no threat to public safety but

either do have or refuse to provide specifics to ease people's concerns. the temporary flight restrictions over critical infrastructure in new york and new jersey will continue until the middle of next month at least. that means that drone pilots can't fly over critical infrastructure like this power plant in jersey city. the nypd in new york is pushing to extend those restrictions permanently. send it back to you. >> julie: nate foye in jersey city, thank you very much. the holiday travel rush is underway and for some travelers it was the nightmare before christmas. american airlines issued a nationwide ground stop this morning at one of the busiest travel days of the year. how does this happen? i'm julie banderas. you have jenkins and julie. >> griff: hour two taking you into christmas eve and i feel

for those travelers stuck at american airlines ground stop. startling for folks trying to get home. another record breaking year on trains, planes, turn pikes whether you are going home for the holidays or going on vacation. 119 million will be traveling according to aaa. some holiday travel plans are put in jeojeopardy. american airlines had a ground stop. it was lifted just before 8:00 a.m. but could cause christmas eve delays. >> julie: in the midwest and northeast snow blanketing parts of the country. snowing in new york city that made me happy today. americans are not letting that derail their plans. watch. >> got there way earlier than you think you need to because there will probably be a long line. >> the last couple of buddies

and two to three hour lines to check their bags. >> this is the first time over the christmas holiday. i don't know what to expect except what you see in the movies. >> how do you prepare for this? >> everybody take care of themselves. >> julie: take care of yourself. fox team coverage from coast to coast. the folks forecast as a storm is set to blanket the midwest, jeff flock tracking traffic on a busy highway, and starting us off max gordon out west at lax. max, good morning. >> it has been tough and go for passengers flying american airlines this morning. the one hour ground stop. the airline saying it is due to tech issues with a vendor they use. luckily that ground stop has been lifted but we're seeing residual delays especially at american airlines hubs. flight aware's misery map that tracks delays and cancellations.

significant delays in dallas, charlotte, miami. three american airlines hubs there. delays and cancellations in chicago, washington, d.c. and new york. this as the holiday travel season is expected to set records. a total of more than 119 million americans are expected to travel during the year-end holidays, up 2.8% over last year. aaa expects air travel to sate new record this holiday season with 7.85 million passengers flying according to aaa, the average domestic ticket is $830. international flights are averaging $1630 a ticket. i asked one flyer what she has done to prepare for the christmas travel rush. >> i don't think you can ever really prepare. checklists and once you have that make sure you are on time. that's the best. you never know. wake up early. >> good advice there. best to get to the airport early

today. especially if you're flying with american airlines, check with your carrier. >> julie: thank you very much. good luck to all of you trying to fly today. especially american airlines. >> griff: now to jeff flock getting a feel for the traffic live from the pennsylvania turnpike. jeff, how dolls it look out there? >> i got a guy, griff, who definitely is in need of some luck this morning. he has already had bad luck. look what we just found on the turnpike. look at this guy. oh geez, that's not a pretty sight. better keep going. i don't want to cause another wreck. you find these things out here. it has been snowy all morning and so that has led to some issues but what you see now as vick points his camera out the window it is clear now. a lot of people on the roads, though. 107 million of the 119 million are traveling on the roads. gas prices, that's a piece of good news. they haven't been low but at

least they've been stable, $3.04 the average gallon of regular now. when you talk about growth, max talked a little bit about it. look at the the most popular mode of travel other than bikes. automobile up 2.4% in the last year, air travel up 4.7% and trains, buses and cruise ships up almost 10%. we're still traveling out there despite occasionally some snow. merry christmas, guys. >> griff: jeff flock hitting the highway like no one else can. thank you and drive safe. joining us now for more on this travel expert. lee, merry christmas eve. >> griff: you can look at the stats. 119 million expected to travel. possibly a record being set and of the 50 plus miles average travel distance, although i

think jeff flock may drive floor doing live shots all day. 90% traveling by car in the case of the pennsylvania turnpike where my wife and daughters are heading to go to their grand parents' house, what do you make of the travel surge this year? >> like every holiday is setting records. this is no different than any others and i think it will continue. the weather is the key factor here. this weekend just look outside in new york city and it is snowing and crazy just getting to the studio. at the same time, you just have to take the usual precautions, drive slowly, get to the airport early and prepare yourself for the inevitable hassles and delays that might occur. >> griff: patience. >> julie: they say pack your patience. i don't have any patience, that's a bunch of baloney. pack what? what is patience? the cancellations are one thing

that you always expect on a holiday, heavy travel. let's look at the latest cancellation numbers. the number is ticking up. 247 cancellations, 9,733 delays. that's not great but what really stinks is if you are an american airlines passenger this morning. i couldn't believe to hear about this electronic snafu they had that grounded every flight on christmas eve. as of right now i don't think they have it back up and running. it is a mess. how does it happen? >> i love looking at the mystery map. it makes me giggle every year. >> julie: so great you get happy with other people's misery. >> that american airliways came out of nowhere. this was down for a little less than an hour but the residuals can last all day if people are connecting in dallas, chicago or wherever it might be it could cause serious issues for

american airlines passengers. a kick in the behind you didn't need on christmas eve. one of the busiest travel days of the season. >> julie: it says a lot about the economy. >> griff: we said yeah, i didn't pay attention to the prices of airlines. let me ask you this, lee. if you can choose to try to be strategic which day you travel, whether driving or flying, you know, two days before or as opposed to the last minute like today, is that actually beneficial? does it matter or does it not really matter the whole week is just a travel mess? >> use myself as an example. i flew from los angeles to new york yesterday. normally i wear flip-flops. but i took the earliest flight if there was a cancellation i would have the best chance of getting out yesterday. the two busiest days were saturday and sunday and today

you are on the cusp of disaster if there is weather like i knew there would be. flying out yesterday was a strategic move by me. and then flying out before the weekend or after the weekend after christmas is generally the way to go. saturday and sunday will be a nightmare. >> griff: great options. >> julie: thank you so much and flying in to us and that you made it. >> griff: give yourself a present and buy a jacket. >> i have one in the greenroom. >> julie: we expect to see winter weather from the midwest to the northeast as millions of americans head out for the holiday travel rush. fox weather meteorologist steven morgan is live in fox square with the christmas eve forecast. i think your mother would be proud of you for covering your ears today. >> you know about ten years ago she bought me this earmuffs and what i use this morning.

coming in handy. it is freezing here in new york city. what about the snow? a quick burst from boston to north of philly this morning like santa is operating, if you blink you missed it. it was wasting no time moving out of here. video as the moderate snow rate kicked in at 8:00 or so. quickly central park the official reporting station for new york city. we get the airport reports as well. central park they picked up one inch of snow. that means we've had a white christmas eve. what about christmas? in the northeast and mid atlantic we have the snow that is still pushing through from just to boston down to d.c. temperatures in d.c. as well as philly rising to near or slightly above freezing. that created more of an icy concern and eventually rain. the temperatures are cold. low 30s is a cold one. as far as new york, the snow has moved on. looking at radar closer it is moving through long island.

we have a dusting on some of the bushes on fox square but that's essentially it. and so the bottom line, how much more snow could we get? bangor maine will pick up half a foot. winter storm warning until 1:00 there. that technical definition of a white christmas, 7:00 a.m. tomorrow morning wherever one inch of snow is recorded, that will be the white christmas. my bet here in new york we won't have a white christmas but i think, julie, sending it back to you, we'll have a little bit of this white stuff on the ground and still be cooler. however, we're warming up. temperatures will warm through the 40s and maybe even the 50s next week. >> julie: what? into the 50s? i need more snow. >> shorts and t-shirts, tell lee. >> julie: he brought in summer. steven, thank you very much. >> he is being treated like a

human ping-pong ball. like he is -- like some sort of political fodder, some sort of spectacle. >> griff: could the media frenzy around luigi mangione threaten his right to a fair trial? his attorney thinks so. we'll get into it after the break. plus senator rand paul airs out his grievances in his annual report this year showing 1 trillion with a t, trillion in wasteful government spending. can doge tackle that? we're tracking old st. nick as he goes around the world in his sleigh to deliver presents to children around the world. it visibly heals and moisturizes dry skin in just 1 use. choose gold bond.

narrator: time is running out to give a year-end gift like no other, a gift that can help st. jude children's research hospital save lives. woman: cancer doesn't care how old you are, and it's devastatingly scary. if you're donating to st. jude, you're supporting finding a cure, because the fight never stops.

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>> griff: here is a list we'll

check twice. about 1 million taxpayers will receive payments of up to $1400 from the i.r.s. that totals to about $2.4 billion. those payments are going to people who have not claimed their covid era stimulus checks. the agency says the amount each person gets will vary based on circumstances. >> julie: the attorney for ceo shooter is blasting new york city mayor and prosecutors for the highly choreographed scene for her client's extradition making it harder for him to get a fair trial. >> he is being treated like a human ping-pong ball like some sort of political fodder. some sort of spectacle. he was on display for everyone to see in the biggest staged perp walk i've ever seen in my career. no reason from the nypd to have big assault rifles that i had no idea it was in their arsenal.

what was the new york city mayor doing at this press conference, your honor? it made it utterly political. >> julie: jason chaffetz is also a fox news contributor joining me now. thank you for coming on. first of all, it is not a first to see law enforcement parade out a perp. that is why they are called perp walks and what the local media wants to do is gather and storm around. this one did get more attention. he came up in a chopper, the mayor was there, protestors and also people cheering him on. so both sides are not complaining about those who were propping him up and congratulating him for this job. what kind of case do they have as far as him not having a fair trial? >> i don't think it stepped over that line so far. quit it. i don't want to see this guy. why is he flying around in a helicopter for goodness sake? you know how expensive that is? it doesn't seem to be done for his safety.

it does seem to be done for show. and so look at all the cops that are there. are you kidding me? does it take that much manpower and police helicopters to move this guy? i don't think so. i think it's done for more show than anything. quit it. i don't want to see the guy. i want him to rot in hell. if he committed that crime, i want him to go away forever and never ever want to see his face. >> julie: mayor adams came out of the woodwork because he is going to be running for mayor and so lately we've been seeing a lot of the mayor basically getting down with hochul trying to get our governor to deport illegal immigrants. he waited for four years to pay attention to and politicize this. the mayor's involvement in all this came out and essentially called the guy guilty without him getting a fair trial and that's what his attorney is arguing is unfair. let's listen to her on mangione not getting a fair trial and how the mayor's involvement plays a

role. >> i'm very concerned about any my client's right to fair trial in this. he has a right to a fair trial. there are consequences to this. i want to put on the record statements that the mayor made publicly about my client. nothing saying alleged, for example and he said i wanted to send a strong message with the police commissioner that we're leading from the front. i'm not going to allow him to come into our city. i wanted to look him in the eye and you carrd out this activity act in the city of new york that i love and he wanted to show symbolism. he is not a symbol but somebody who is afforded the right to a fair trial. >> julie: do you think the mayor's actions backfired there? >> i think the mayor also needs to be quiet at this point. they caught the guy. that is the suspect. he needs to get a fair trial. the attorneys need to be careful. if they change the venue, they

bring him to a place like, i don't know, utah, idaho, move him to another part, he could get a much harsher sentence and much harsher treatment i think from a jury pool as opposed to new york city. we'll see. again, be quiet. the case is -- this is their suspect, he gets a trial. stop showing his face. stop talking about him. >> julie: i want to switch gears to the subway murder of this guatemalan illegal immigrant who burned a lady to death while she was sleeping on a subway car. pictures of him and he sat there and watched her burn. who else sat there, other strap hangers, nobody jumped in. reminds us of the daniel penny effect where critics are blasting bystanders who watched a woman burn to death on the new york city subway. "new york post" has this headline. no one helped. why did no one help her?

fatal subway burning exposes new york city's sad disconnect to humanity. even cops walked by and did nothing. >> i can't answer for the police who are trained to deal with these types of things. i don't know where the fire extinguisher was. it is hard to judge a bystander just there and then suddenly there is a person on fire. i think they want to help but it's horrific. i feel bad for, you know, this whole scenario. it should have never happened. by the way, julie, next time merry christmas. these are two tough topics on christmas eve but it is good to see you, that's for sure. >> julie: always great to see you, too, thank you so much for coming on. merry christmas, we love you. >> merry christmas, thank you. >> griff: president biden breaking another promise, walking away from billions of dollars in student loans bail-outs. plus this.

>> what is on your christmas wish list for america? >> peace. great health and love. >> get the economy going. >> stop badmouthing each other. >> donald trump to have a successful presidency. >> affordable rent. >> griff: will american's christmas wishes for the u.s. come true? we'll find out. ♪ serving customers with top tier mobile service is our business, but our mission is to honor and serve patriots, like harry mcbrien. post 911. my life oscillated between multiple tours with the marine corps and my police job, profoundly disrupting my health and changing who i was. harry reached out to the boot campaign, which offers individualized care to veterans and their families. the boot campaign's intervention was a lifeline.

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i get to do what i want when i want. the fact that we're still in this home, means so much. our customers' homes are taking care of them. maybe, your home could do the same for you. call finance of america and get your free info kit. call this number >> julie: cutting waste is a top concern for the trump administration and senator rand paul is giving trump's doge team a list of potential spending cuts worth up to $1 trillion. joey jones joins us now. joey, great to see you as always. merry christmas to you. love you. let's first talk about the fact that there were still victims in north carolina and in florida that are still suffering

desperately wanting to rebuild their homes that aren't in their homes because they were destroyed on this christmas but all this wasteful spending in washington. >> yeah, par for the course, unfortunately. every year congress gets in a fight over their spending bill and they want to just do a continuing resolution and want to continue to spend the money they're already spending and then they have to add things in there to sweeten the deal to get one side or the other to vote for it. it is hard to believe it took that much to get allocated for relief in western north carolina when you see these images. you have an administration that fought the supreme court and congress and everyone else to forgive student loan debt or spend money in the report that rand paul put out in so many different ways. one thing a lot of people don't understand when congress writes a bill it doesn't have specificity in it. it all indicates an amount of money to a department of the

government and gives that department a lot of say how the money is used. you get the report from rand paul and see money that might have been allocated for public works is being used to do pickleball court and things like that. it is a shared responsibility between congress and the administration. it is another reason why if you are conservative you are glad president trump is in office. the executive government has more and more say over things like this every cycle. >> julie: take a look at this tweet on doge. it basically states that unless addressed the u.s. government will add 4.8 billion of debt every day boring 268 million every hour. 4.5 million every minute. total debt stands at 36.2 trillion. this year interest payments exceed 1 trillion. here is rand paul's report which details the 1 trillion of government spending.

20 million spent on the rocky sesame street show. $12 million on pickleball come flex in las vegas. 10.8 million on a cat experiment. 3 million on girl-centered climate action in brazil. you can't make this up. 2.1 million on border security in paraguay, not united states. and 10,000 drag cabaret show on ice. seriously? what? >> i really don't know how to react to this because it doesn't surprise me anymore. americans know this is happening and we keep voting for the same people. i have a lot of respect for thomas massey and some of the others that stood up in the budget fight. they may not have it exactly right but the courage to stand up and say something. what happens in congress they keep sliding things in and sliding things in. leadership says to take care of that member and the five or six aligned with him or her let's

put this in there and never thinking about us. we're about to go into christmas and right after christmas is tax season and balancing how much do we have to pay in april or february whenever you pay your taxes, how much we have to pay at the end of tax season with how much money we can spend on our family now. this is a good opportunity to see this is where the money goes, it goes to this stuff. >> julie: it should be going back to the american people. joey jones, thank you very much for talking to us and merry christmas to you. >> merry christmas. thank you. >> julie: it is that critical time of year when my kids and i make very long journey and set out on our search for santa claus and to find out if we made the nice list more importantly. with the help of story book experiences.com, wardrobe and onto our trip to the north pole we went guided by our evils, chippy, snowflake and buddy we walked through the lincoln tunnel. passed through the seven levels

of the candy cane forest to santa's house. we didn't want to show up empty-handed and we helped him with sorting male and wrap gifts. i'm not very good at that. my kids ventured into santas kitchen to help with baking. i wish they would do it at home and the moment we're all waiting for. much to our surprise they made the nice list. it was touch and go. mommy's name was not on there. santa promised me there was an adult list somewhere. i didn't see it. i have to hold him to his word. on this christmas eve i wish everyone at home to join me on the nice list. i hope i'm there and be kind to one another. that's all i can say and wish all of you a very merry christmas. >> griff: you were 100% on the nice list. that's amazing photos of your children. what a great experience. that is what -- just to make a point quickly, it is so easy to get cynical at christmas as an

adult. it's about the children. children experiencing the magic and the story of christmas and that is amazing. my kids are older. i had my dog. my >> griff: my wife kathleen andreas call. i don't think he likes putting on the santa thing. my kids are getting older. the dog is the recipient of the christmas spirit. just amazing your photos and the experience. that's great and inspiring. you definitely are on the nice list. 19 and 23 they don't sit on santa's lap but not shy about what they might want for christmas. a message of unity this season. how americans are coming together in a rare holiday alignment.

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>> griff: to the gridiron we go. bengals quarterback joe burrow getting into the giving spirit with a viral christmas present to linemen. samurai swords. >> christmas gift? [inaudible]

>> well, they wanted guns. i was like i don't know about guns, guys. and so i was in the weapon mindset and what's a cool weapon? samurai swords i think are pretty dang cool. >> griff: he is correct. they're cool. teammates appreciate jevityed them. alex kappa said it was one of the best gifts he has ever received. joe, don't forget the guy, bill hemmer, deserves one of those, too. please send a samurai sword. >> julie: the strike by starbucks workers expands to more than 300 coffee shops around the country as baristas seek a boost to their paychecks. we're live in denver with more. hi. >> good morning, julie. this closed starbucks is one of

six union locations in the city of denver shut down. the baristas and folks who work here are demanding a new contract with better wages and scheduling. they are among about 500 stores with staff represented by starbucks workers united which started organizing in 2021 and now represents more than 10,000 bare is takes and shift supervisor across the country. the two sides haven't agreed on a contract. the goal was to get one done by the end of this year. union members are demanding in part $20 an hour and company-paid healthcare. they also want more predictable schedules which will help workers be eligible for benefits. one shift supervisor in california told us the job is demanding physically and emotionally grueling at times, too. >> starbucks takes an emotional toll. there are a lot of customers who are difficult to deal with and just -- it is hard not to go home at the end of the night and

be playing over these interactions over and over and over. >> 97% of starbucks stores are not unionized so the majority of locations remain open for business. the company says the union's current demands are not sustainable and ready to return to the negotiating table. today is the final day of their five-day strike ahead of christmas. they chose the busy holiday to have the biggest impact on the coffee chain's bottom line. we expect workers to start walking the line here any minute now. i was talking to some of them. they are about getting ready to get set up. back to you. >> julie: all right, thank you very much. merry christmas, great to see you. president-elect donald trump is now slamming president biden for the 11th hour commutations of nearly all federal death row inmates. he posted on truth social that once he is in the white house, he will quote direct the justice department to vigorously pursue

the death penalty to protect american families and children from violent rapists. we'll be a nation of law and order again. >> griff: an outpouring of outrage and disbelief from relatives of the victims of those death row inmates set free by biden. one person whose sister was fatally strangled is speaking out telling the "new york post" why does he need to get special treatment? he is going to risk other people. what justification does biden have for doing this? i want to have him explain to us, to our faces, why he chose to give them mercy when they didn't give other people mercy. karl rove, a former white house deputy chief of staff and fox news contributor. karl, the outrage is certainly understandable and it is worth noting that before this man murdered officers snell he raped

and murdered and eight and 9-year-old child. two girls. their names are laura hobbs and crystal tobias, next to amanda snell. do you think joe biden knows the names laura hobbs and crystal tobias and even knew this? >> no, absolutely not. look, this is a morally bankrupt act by the outgoing president. think about this. he takes all but three of the people who were on death row for federal crimes involving murder and all but three and says i will commute your sentences but i will allow the death penalty to applied in the three other high-profile cases where we might know the names of the victims because they include things such as the guy who bombed the boston marathon. why say the death penalty is wrong in those 37 cases and right in the other three?

at least he would be morally, you know, morally consistent if he said i oppose the death penalty even though it's a law established on the statute books of the united states by an act of congress signed by a previous president of the united states, i will ignore that law but at least it would be consistent. i hate the death penalty. nobody should have to be dealt with in that way but no, we'll have somewhere the death penalty will apply and others where it won't. he can't mention a single victim i suspect of a murderer he has now commuted the sentence to life in prison. it is astonishing and do it on the eve of christmas. think about those families who lost a loved one and how they will be dealing with that trauma during what ought to be one of the most beautiful moments of the year. god bless them and question why joe biden did this. >> griff: such a great point on multiple levels, karl. whether or not you are morally

equating one heinous act versus another but with the timing. you worked in the white house, was there any reason it had to be done right before the most sentimental holiday stabbing a dagger of grief for these families? could it have waited until the new year? >> he could have. let's go back to the essential nature of this which is joe biden has made a decision that he was so offensive in his language. he said i believe in a fair and legal system. these men and women were fairly tried and held in a court of law by a jury of their peers to have committed a heinous act and were judged accordingly and granted the death penalty. and he decides this is not a case where oh, while they were sitting in prison and did something incredible and saved the life of a fellow inmate or found god and entered a religious order. no, there is no attempt to say

these people deserve to have their sentence commuted because of things they've done since the time they were found guilty. it is a simple act they were found guilty of a crime so heinous that they were given the death penalty that has drawn the mercy of joe biden. of course, except for the three that, well, for some reason he is not granting commutation of their death sentence. it is unbelievably callous and stupid in my opinion. >> griff: some suggested the three exceptions were for fear of a negative p.r. moment, which i'm pretty sure a lot of people are thinking this may be one after, as you so well laid out, the inconsistencies of conscience. >> thank you very much. merry christmas to you and yours. >> griff: american airlines flights are back in the sky after resolving a tech issue this morning. in a statement the airline

telling fox news we sincerely apologize. our team is working diligently to get customers where they need to go as quickly as possible. >> julie: when lights unite. the rare collision of hanukkah and christmas this year sending a much-needed message of togetherness. we'll be joined by a priest and rabbi that share their thoughts on this rarity. we'll be back after the break. hank used to suffer from what felt like a cold & flu medicine hangover in the morning. ha ha. haha! then he switched to mucinex nightshift. mucinex is uniquely formulated to leave your system faster, so you wake up ready to go. uhh, hank! try mucinex nightshift and feel the difference. mega-heist! -yeah! -i can't go back to jail! wait, did you rob my bank?

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military decoration awarded by the united states government. the tunnel to towers foundation and the congressional medal of honor society recognizes valor beyond the call of duty. britt slabinski, a recipient of the medal of honor himself, sat down with fellow recipients to hear their stories from their military service to their transition into the veteran community. it■s nothing we won, right? we're pretty vocal on that, saying, look, i didn't win anything like we're a recipient of this. you're going to highlight me for the day. we're four guys get killed. never crossed my mind about receiving the medal of honor. never. i was told i was being put in for it the day after the battle. the highest level of valor. you want to understand, why did these people lose their lives? why aren't they in my place? can't refuse it. we don't have the wear if you don't want to. they feel you earned it.

people think war ends the moment you get home. no. war sticks with you. for me, it was like i was in a fog. really? for. for several months. you're literally on the edge of life and death at any moment. and then 12 hours later, you're at home and you're going to birthday parties and you have to go back to assimilating that life. it's fascinating how many of our brothers and sisters. it■s a significant problem. end up on the streets. tunnel to towers is taking a leadership role. and specifically when i think about the veteran homeless population. we as an organization, we have gaps and it takes partnerships to come in and help us fill those gaps to ensure that nobody is left behind. and that's what tunnel to towers does. we just recently gave them our citizen honors award, recognizing all the great work that they have done. it's a fulfilling a promise to this nation, saying that, tunnel towers is gonna give you smart homes, pay mortgages. there's no level of recognition that rises to what is being done on behalf of those gold star families.

and we're not forgetting you. never forget. go to t2t.org and donate $11 a month. thank you. ♪ who knows what tomorrow will bring ♪ (dog whines) ♪ but as for me ♪ (knock at door) ♪ i'll wait and see ♪ ♪ and maybe it'll bring my love to me ♪ ♪ who knows ♪ ♪ who knows ♪ big news for mahomes! i'm switching to iphone 16 pro at t-mobile! it's built for apple intelligence. that's like peanut butter on jelly... on gold. get four iphone 16 pro on us, plus four lines for $25 bucks. what a deal. ya'll giving it away too fast t-mobile, slow down. >> griff: president biden throws in the towel walking away from some of his bail out plans to cancel student loan hand-outs. grady trimble is live with the latest at the white house. >> president biden promised to never stop fighting to cancel

student loan debt but as that government shutdown was looming last week, the biden administration quietly did just that. abandoning plans to cancel student loan debt for around 30 million borrowers. the department of education dropped the targeted relief plan referred to as plan b after the supreme court struck down biden's first attempt at student loan debt forgiveness and called off another effort, too. the education secretary says it made the move because of quote, operational challenges in implementing the proposals. time and resources running short in the last weeks of this current administration. republicans say, including senator bill cassidy, that biden's student loan schemes were always a lie. he goes on to say with today's latest withdrawal, they are admitting the schemes were nothing more than a dishonest attempt to buy votes by transferring debt to taxpayers who paid their loans or chose to forego college. democrats on the hill, including

as recently as earlier this month, were pushing president biden to forgive even more student loan debt but it sounds like no plans to do that in the final weeks of this administration. and no plans that we're aware of for the incoming administration to cancel student loan debt, either. griff. >> griff: i think that's highly unlikely. grady trimble live for us on the north lawn of the white house. thank you. >> julie: a message of unity this season. both christmas and the start of hanukkah will be falling on the same day this year as americans come together in a rare holiday alignment that has only happened once since the year 1900. this is the fourth time that it has happened. welcome symbol of unity and togetherness when our country needs it most. two religious leaders join us, father gerald murray and rabbi matthias. thank you for talking to us. rabbi, it couldn't come at a

more critical time. the anti-semitism has been heartbreaking to watch in this country and the first night of christmas is the first night of hanukkah is special for the jewish people and hopefully will bring unity. >> this is rare. it hasn't happened often. but it is important because there is so much darkness in the world and hanukkah and the holidays are happening now it is about light and bringing light to the world, bringing people together, about our shared values that we have. >> griff: father, what about the common thread? where do you see it? what's bringing you together? what common bond can you find between catholicism and judaism on this unique moment? >> both religions are rooted in the old testament and god's choice of the people of israel. the church calls herself the new israel. we're united in our faith in one god and that's what is important these days. an american secularism has been on the rise.

treating religion as an obstacle. the anti-semitism is horrendous. justification of hatred in the name of some kind of strange greater good. there is no greater good than love of neighbor and respect for other religions. i'm happy, rabbi, we're celebrating the feast on the same day. jesus said i'm the light of the world. the star that appeared over bethlehem is symbolic of that light. light, truth, peace, joy, reverence for god. this is what we share in common and this is, i think, beautiful to celebrate together. >> julie: it couldn't come at a better time. the "washington post" has an op-ed. the headline reads christmas and hanukkah have more in common than you think. both holidays share the universal human phenomenon of wanting light and warmth as it gets dark and cold. we huddle the share the warmth of others. i'm hoping people seriously understand this message and they apply it to their new year as a resolution to stop the hate and

to stop the violence and to really quite frankly realize that we're all the same. >> absolutely. i think it is getting to the core of what these holidays are about. hanukkah is about the story of the greeks religiously persecuting the jews 2,000 years ago and that persecution was a clash of philosophies. greeks said what is perfectly is the material, the military warrior. judaism said it's our morals and values and spirituality and bringing those ideas into the world brings light and goodness into the world and what we have to bring today. >> griff: rabbi and father, it has been so great to have you here. what an important moment it is for the coming together of the two religions and finding the common bond in a time that couldn't be more important. christmas eve. john roberts is next wit