welcome to you our viewers in the united states, canada and around the world, i'm kim brunhuber, and this is "cnn newsroom." >>> u.s. health experts have warned for months that the covid-19 would explode with the arrival of cooler weather and now it's happening. for nine straight days, more than 100,000 americans have tested positive. on wednesday, the country hit a record 144,000 new cases and almost 1,900 deaths. hospitalizations have soared to their highest levels yet, and even as the virus rages around the world, the united states remains the epicenter of the crisis. the country has documented more than 10.4 million cases since the pandemic began, far more than any other country. more than 241,000 americans have died from the disease. texas is now the first u.s. state to top 1 million covid infections. that's more than most rcountrie. cnn's nick watt has the latest. >> he went to work. it was the last time we saw him. it was last time his children saw him. >> reporter: daniel morales, a 39-year-old nurse, among el paso's dead. this city is in trouble, nearly 30,000 active cases,

i'm kim brunhuber and you're watching "cnn newsroom. >>> police in washington, d.c. have been out in force after violent confrontations between pro-trump supporters and anti-trump protesters. officials say one person is in critical condition with stab wounds. the mayor's office reports two police officers were injured. at least 20 people have been arrested. trump blamed the violence on anti-trump protesters. the unrest erupted hours after a pro-trump rally to protest his election loss. the president's motorcade made a slow pass through the crowd on his way to the golf course. while the president challenges the election in court, his firing of the u.s. defense secretary and other government officials has set off alarm bells. one official called it a dictator move. historian ruth ben gyat joins us via skype from new york, author of "strong men from mussolini to the present." with trump's regrufusal to acknowledge the election, people have been throwing around dictator, trump's a dictator, so on. you've studied modern authoritarian leaders. the cult of personality, the

i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom." >>> almost 10 months into america's coronavirus pandemic, and the u.s. has set another record high for new daily cases. more than 187,000 new infections were reported thursday, according to johns hopkins university, with numbers heading in the wrong direction across most of the country, an influential model has raised its projected winter death toll by 30,000. of course there are two promising vaccine candidates in the works, but new research indicates that factors other than effectiveness can impact how well a vaccination program works. they include distribution, the severity of the pandemic and people's willingness to take a vaccine. the top u.s. infectious disease expert is optimistic. >> vaccines are close by. they're coming. i said help is on the way, which to me i think should motivate people even more to double down because pretty soon we're going to get a heck of a lot of help from a very efficacious vaccine, two vaccines that just two weeks ago and thi

live from cnn world head quarqus in atlanta, welcome, i'm kim brunhuber.his is "cnn newsroom." >>> we're following some major political stories for you this hour. first, president donald trump has forced another recount of presidential ballots in the state of georgia. the biden campaign responded saying, quote, last week's recount reaffirmed what we already knew, georgia voters selected joe biden to be their next president. any further recount will simply reaffirm joe biden's victory in georgia a third time. now hours earlier, president trump got a stinging rebuke from a pennsylvania judge. we'll have details on that in a moment. and georgia republican senator kelly loeffler is waiting for clarification on her covid-19 tests, and so are we. as we mentioned, things didn't go president trump's way in the state of pennsylvania saturday, far from it. a federal judge there didn't just dismiss a trump campaign lawsuit, he used very strong language in the process. and he's a republican. justice correspondent jessica schneider has the story. >> reporter: a federal

i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom."

you're watching "cnn newsroom" and i'm kim brunhuber. just ahead, president donald trump is still clinging to the notion that he hasn't lost the election and is encouraging his top ranking officials to do the same. president-elect joe biden didn't hold back on that saying the president's refusal to concede is an embarrassment and more americans are hospitalized with covid-19 than at any other point in this pandemic. some hospitals say they're at their breaking point. >>> it's been eight days since the election here in the u.s. and president donald trump still not willing to publicly accept his defeat by joe biden. mr. trump and his allies continue to undermine the legitimacy of the election and delay the transition of power. u.s. secretary of state mike pompeo is among the high profile leaders not to accept the win. >> are they currently ready to engage and if not when does it pose a risk to national security? >> there will be a smooth transition to a second trump administration. >> president trump is still mounting legal challenges to t

kim brunhuber, cnn, atlanta. >> as the u.s. focuses on thanksgiving, tomorrow europe is bracing for christmas, just a month away. france starts lifting covid-19 restrictions this weekend reopening shops and hair dressing salons. president emmanuel macron said further easing is expected mired december and there's hope people can spend christmas with their families. the u.k. has already promised a relatively free festive window, up to three families will be allowed to gather indoors from december 23rd to the 28th. and germany on the other hand is considering tightening restrictions. that's because the country recorded 410 covid-related deaths, the highest ever in a 24-hour period. cnn is covering every angle of europe's covid-19 fight. jim bidder man is in france, selma is in london and we begin with frederick pleitgen in germany. good to see you. also, fred, what is behind germany's record single day coronavirus deaths and how will the government respond to this? >> reporter: well, interesting, rosemary, germany has been really

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you're watching "cnn newsroom" and i'm kim brunhuber.head, president donald trump is still clinging to the notion that he hasn't lost the election and is encouraging his top ranking officials to do the same. president-elect joe biden didn't hold back on that saying the president's refusal to concede is an embarrassment and more americans are hospitalized with covid-19 than at any other point in this pandemic. some hospitals say they're at their breaking point.

i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom." >>> several groups supporting donald trump are expected to hold rallies today in washington to protest his election loss. many of them are promoting the president's false narrative that the november 3rd election was rigged. president trump tweeted his appreciation for the expected show of support, he might stop by to say hello. now, there's virtually no chance that the election result will change. cnn projects that biden will take georgia and extend his electoral lead at 306. >>> 20% spike in coronavirus from the day before. president trump has yet to concede and he may never, one week after the election was called for joe biden, the president still seems to the cling to the idea that he'll get a second term. jim acosta has the lastest from the white house. >> reporter: welcome to the white house twilight zone where president trump is still clinging to an alternate reality. >> this administration won't be to going so the lockdown. >> reporter: in the real world