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Republicans Feud Over Visas And Foreign-Born Workers; "Noctourism" Wellness Trips Top Next Year's Travel Outlook; Seahawks Keep Playoff Hopes Alive With 6-3 Win Over Bears. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired December 27, 2024 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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DANNY FREEMAN, CNN ANCHOR: It is 5:30 a.m. here on the East Coast. Here's a live look right now at Cincinnati, Ohio -- beautiful this morning. Good morning, everyone. I'm Danny Freeman in for Kasie Hunt. So good to have you with us this morning.
We begin with an argument over immigrants in the United States' workforce among Donald Trump's supporters, which has now been spilling out online. In one corner you have the DOGE leaders, Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy, who are defending Silicon Valley for bringing in foreign engineers.
In a long post on X, Ramaswamy wrote in part, "The reason top tech companies often hire foreign-born and first-generation engineers over 'native' Americans isn't because of an innate American IQ deficit (a lazy and wrong explanation. It's rather a key part of it comes down to the c-word: culture. A culture that celebrates the prom queen over the math Olympiad champ, or the jock over the valedictorian, will not produce the best engineers."
Ramaswamy goes on to blame '90s sitcoms like "BOY MEETS WORLD" and other media for celebrating average, saying we need less of this --
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BEN SAVAGE, ACTOR, "BOY MEETS WORLD": This is me, Mr. Average. My room here is a shrine to my mediocre life.
RIDER STRONG, ACTOR, "BOY MEETS WORLD": Oh, let's stop right there, OK? You don't have a mediocre life.
SAVAGE: There's nothing about me that separates me from anybody else.
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FREEMAN: And perhaps more like this from the 2014 "Whiplash."
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J.K. SIMMONS, ACTOR, "WHIPLASH": Say it louder! NATE LANG, ACTOR, "WHIPLASH": Carl, start practicing harder, Neiman.
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FREEMAN: And right on cue here comes the MAGA backlash. Prominent Trump allies like Matt Gaetz, Ann Coulter, Laura Loomer -- they all jumped to criticize Ramaswamy's position.
Coulter claims tech wants indentured servants on H1B visas, not 'highly-skilled' workers." Gaetz said, "Tech bros joined MAGA for economic reasons and they didn't ask them to engineer an immigration policy." Loomer went a step further claiming Ramaswamy "doesn't even know what MAGA immigration policy is."
Now, President-elect Trump has yet to weigh in one way or another on this online skirmish. But this latest among his base -- frankly, at times on the campaign trail President-elect Trump seemed to hit -- hint, rather, I should say, at backing both sides of this argument.
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DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: I will protect our workers. I will protect our jobs. We will build American, we will buy American, and we will hire American.
What I want to do and what I will do is you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically as part of your diploma a green card to be able to stay in this country.
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FREEMAN: Joining me now to discuss all of this, Reese Gorman, political reporter at NOTUS. And Mychael Schnell, congressional reporter for The Hill. Thank you both for joining me this morning.
Reese, let's start with you. What do you make of this online argument breaking out into the open between the Trump base the DOGE bros?
REESE GORMAN, POLITICAL REPORTER, NOTUS (via Webex by Cisco): This is kind of just your kind of normal MAGA civil war that we've been seeing just a little bit throughout since the campaign started. People fighting for control.
You saw Loomer always tends to be in the middle of this. She -- people always came after her obviously for her kind of battle of denialism and so on and so forth whenever she went --
MYCHAEL SCHNELL, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, THE HILL (via Webex by Cisco): Right.
GORMAN: -- to (INAUDIBLE) now. Here they are -- you know, she's going after other people.
But at the end of the day, I mean, Trump himself has said that he thinks that if you graduate from a U.S. college that you should get a green card. And I think that's kind of been where the party -- where he believes -- that where he's aligned.
And that's kind of what Elon and Vivek were saying as well where they are kind of talking about yeah, right -- if you graduate, we should give skilled workers green cards. And that's kind of where the infighting started. So I think they are more in line with where Trump is than where Loomer and them are at the -- at the current moment.
And so I think that's kind of the infighting is just one side just wants no immigration and wants a complete pause. The other side wants kind of still strict immigration policies. They want to stop illegal immigration and they want a -- they want really strict policies, but they want to also give green cards to "skilled workers."
[05:35:07]
And there just kind of see this fight play out and we'll see where it goes and where kind of Trump falls on this. But he has made clear that he does think that if you graduate from a U.S. college you should get a green card.
FREEMAN: And Mychael, was it only a matter of time before these two sides and perspectives clashed? Because again, Matt Gaetz saying we didn't want you to come and do immigration policy even though people like Elon -- I mean, first buddy. He very much has a seat at the table. It seems like this was bound to happen at one point or another, right?
SCHNELL: Yeah. I mean, when you're dealing with such a wide variety of issues and matters, particularly controversial hot button issues, you're going to have some disagreements.
But something I think this lends the conversation to and it's something recent I and our colleagues up on Capitol Hill were curious about as well during the government funding drama of previous weeks was how much does Elon Musk talk for President-elect Donald Trump? We saw the whole situation with the government funding bill that Elon Musk first came out against, and that led to President-elect Donald Trump.
There was a lot of curiosity among reporters of should we take Elon Musk's stance on something to understand that is where Donald Trump is coming from?
And I think that this situation with immigration that we're seeing play out right now -- as Reese mentioned, this MAGA civil war -- lends itself to that conversation of does one thing Elon Musk say -- does that mean that President-elect Trump is leaning in that direction or moving towards that direction on that particular issue or topic?
Now, the answer to that question remains to be seen. It could be determined on a case-by-case basis. But this just also leads to the conversation of we're in such an interesting situation right now where we have somebody so prominent like Elon Musk who has such a place at the table and such a strong voice in various conversations despite the fact that, of course, he was not elected president. And we're hearing that from a lot of folks who say I voted for Donald Trump for president and not Elon Musk for president.
So this is just the latest example of this fascinating dynamic that we're seeing play out between Trump and Musk as we enter the Trump administration that we're going to have to continue to keep an eye on because it doesn't look like it's going to subside anytime soon.
FREEMAN: Yeah. Meanwhile, you say a case-by-case basis. I'm just amazed that we're not even at the new year and we've already seen so many of these cases and these fissures or interesting moments crop up already. You know, we're still a little bit less than a month out from Inauguration Day.
Anyway, you know, it's so funny when these sort of things happen. When one person tweets everyone has to get in on the act.
Nikki Haley also slammed Ramaswamy over his comments on American culture specifically, writing, "There is nothing wrong with American workers or American culture. All you have to do is look at the border and see how many want what we have. We should be investing and prioritizing in Americans, not foreign workers."
I mean, no surprise, I guess, that Nikki Haley doesn't exactly see eye-to-eye with Ramaswamy. We have a SOT featuring some of their clashes from before. Take a listen.
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VIVEK RAMASWAMY, (R) FORMER 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Her own daughter was actually using the app for a long time, so you might want to take care of your family first before preaching to the audience about my adult daughter.
NIKKI HALEY, (R) FORMER 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Leave my daughter out of your voice.
RAMASWAMY: The next generation of Americans are using, and that's actually the point. You have her supporters propping her up. That's fine. Here's the truth.
HALEY: You're just scum.
RAMASWAMY: The easy answer --
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FREEMAN: "You're just scum." Who could forget?
Reese, you know, I think -- I think there's a question as to where Nikki Haley and her supporters necessarily fit into the larger Republican Trump world at the moment. But, I mean, it's both to Trump's left, both to Trump's right. I mean, it seems like the coalition already is seeing some of the fault lines, no?
GORMAN: Yeah. I mean, Nikki Haley and Laura Loomer is not on my 2024 bingo card --
FREEMAN: Right. Right. Exactly.
GORMAN: -- of being on the same team here.
FREEMAN: And so I think -- I mean, Nikki Haley, to her credit, has kind of just -- I mean, she believes what she believes and she's said that she's not trying -- I mean, she -- really, her political future in the era in a Trump Republican Party is kind of done. I mean, she kind of did herself in. And so she really has to find a way and she really found her way by just being who she is and saying her policies.
She's not beholden trying to please Trump or please whoever. And you see this. I mean, you see some of the policies she comes out for Trump would never come out for because they're too moderate. They're a little bit more to the left of Trump.
And then here we are -- she's doing -- she's siding with a more further right version of the Republican Party. She's really just kind of -- and I think it's just a testament to her is she's just not beholden to try to please anybody because she lost her race for the presidency. She really can't -- well, I won't say can't but likely will not be able to kind of win in a Republican primary in this day and age. And so she really just is able to speak her mind.
But I think as far as, like, does her word have impact in the era of Trump? No. I mean, we saw how Trump just kind of destroyed every person in the primary. He ran the tables.
SCHNELL: Um-hum.
GORMAN: So clearly, people side with him.
[05:40:00]
So I think whether or not -- I don't necessarily believe that her word is necessarily going to influence a bunch of people. But it is kind of just interesting to see her weighing in on all these issues.
FREEMAN: Mychael, I'll give you the last word here. I mean, again, we're seeing such unlikely bedfellows. Bill de Blasio, Jared Polis also agreeing with Musk and Ramaswamy. I mean, Democrats crossing lines to agree with the DOGE guys. I mean, is this a preview of what's to come?
SCHNELL: I think it's certainly possible. Again, especially when we're dealing with such a breadth of issues, such a breadth of matters that are so hot button. I think that this quite possible is.
Look, we saw this happen sometimes during the first Trump administration and it's entirely possible that we see this come the second Trump administration and have these odd coalitions form. Sometimes we see folks on the ultra-right and the ultra-left join forces and agree with various matters.
Yes, I think that this is very possibly an example of what we may see in the looming Trump administration, but I also expect things to remain very partisan. We're currently in a moment of high partisanship, high ideological differences. We've seen that play out on a number of different occasions, and I don't suspect that will change.
But could we potentially see these moments of odd bedfellows going forward? Absolutely, we do, and I suspect that we continue will -- to -- we will continue to do that going forward.
FREEMAN: Reese and Mychael, thank you so much for playing ball on a fun, interesting, and new subject. Looking forward to more conversations in the new year. Appreciate it.
GORMAN: Thank you.
SCHNELL: Thanks, Danny.
FREEMAN: And still ahead on CNN THIS MORNING, the Seattle Seahawks keep their playoff hopes alive, but they did it with a rather unusual score -- an unusual game, too. We have that in our CNN sports update.
Plus, if you have plans to get out and see the world in the new year, we'll look at the hottest trends you should definitely keep an eye on.
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Clip from Universal Pictures' "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again."
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Clip from Sony Pictures "Eat, Pray, Love."
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FREEMAN: So if you're looking to travel in the new year perhaps "Eat, Pray, Love" style, an array of new opportunities may be waiting just for you. Booking.com is dubbing 2025 the year that ushers in new ways of experiencing the world -- from millennials rethinking the airport experience to thrill-seeking boomers."
According to the website, some of 2025's most popular destinations are likely to include -- let's see if I can do this -- Sanya, China, often referred to as China's Hawaii, Triest, Italy, and Tromso, Norway, with travelers set to embrace new trends like noctourism, vintage voyaging, and much more. These are all shaping the future of travel.
Joining me now to help explain it all is Maddi Bourgerie, a travel expert for RVshare, the world's largest peer-to-peer RV rental platform. Good morning, Maddi. Thank you for helping me understand all of these new trends for 2025.
All right, so I just said booking.com predicting a rise in noctourism; spending kids' inheritance, also known as SKI; vintage voyaging; and the gate escape. Please, can you walk through these. What are they meaning and why are they becoming popular?
MADDI BOURGERIE, TRAVEL EXPERT, RVSHARE (via Webex by Cisco): Yeah, let's do it. Thanks for having me. I'm excited to talk about travel.
It's going to be a big year for travel. We're currently in a huge travel boom for the holiday season with over 119 million people traveling right now between Christmas and New Years. So, 2025 is about to be a boom year for travel and with booking.com kind of highlighting some of these really interesting trends.
The first one I'll touch on is noctourism.
FREEMAN: Yes, please.
BOURGERIE: So kind of off the back of the eclipse in 2024 last April a lot of Americans got to experience that phenomenon, and they're interested in doing more of that. So the dark skies is something that people want to see this year and are heading to different destinations that highlight the night sky.
My personal recommendation would be Big Bend National Park in west Texas. It is an amazing experience and actually dubbed as the darkest place in the U.S. But the U.S. has over 150 dark places where you can see the night sky and the Milky Way with your bare eye.
FREEMAN: Oh, wow -- that's amazing.
The gate escape -- can you explain that one, too?
BOURGERIE: Yeah. So, of course, people are looking to get out and enjoy -- they're, you know, traveling with their families and that one is really of interest for people who want to experience the local culture. They're looking to shop and enjoy something that is more immersive into the culture and using different experiences through AI travel planning.
So when they are looking at traveling to different destinations, like Tokyo -- Tokyo has been at the top of everyone's list for a while and a top destination. But instead of going to the city, maybe you travel outside.
When I had asked an AI trip planning tool where I should go, Hakone was the top place to experience Tokyo and Japan's natural hot springs and stay in a traditional ryokan.
FREEMAN: You know, it's funny. One of my good friends actually recommended doing a Tokyo trip for 2025. That's funny you say that.
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Last thing. Expedia wrote about set-jetting. Basically, it's a popular trend where two-thirds of travelers say movies, streaming services, and TV shows are influencing their travel choices -- a 16 percent increase from last year. What shows and movies are inspiring people to travel, Maddi?
BOURGERIE: That's right. So they've been tracking this trend since 2022, and it's continued to rise.
The shows that people are most interested in traveling for are the "YELLOWSTONE." It's the final season of "YELLOWSTONE" this fall-this winter. And people are looking to head out to have that ranch lifestyle experience. Most people are heading to Montana or Wyoming.
And then another one that has been a huge inspiration to a lot of people is the "WHITE LOTUS." "WHITE LOTUS" has filmed in Hawaii, but the new season will be in Thailand. And people are heading towards the islands of Thailand to kind of have that same experience that they'll see on the show.
FREEMAN: I figured you were going to say that. I thought you would. I can't -- I mean, yeah, "WHITE LOTUS" -- that's on my travel. I want to go to Italy and now I've got to go to Thailand. Watch the new season, everyone, coming on MAX very, very soon.
Maddi Bourgerie, thank you so much for breaking all that down for us. I really appreciate it.
BOURGERIE: Thank you.
FREEMAN: And it's time now for sports. The Seahawks keep their slim playoff hopes alive without even scoring a touchdown against the Bears. Don't worry, the Bears didn't score a touchdown either.
Coy Wire has this morning's CNN sports update. How you doing, Coy?
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I hope you didn't have any of those players on your Fantasy team, Danny. I had two of them.
FREEMAN: D.J. Moore, D.J. Moore.
WIRE: OK. Well, you did all right. Good for you. The only player that actually did decently.
Hey look, we've had some really exciting Thursday night games this season, but if you love offense and high scoring this was not one of them. The final Thursday night game of the year was a snoozefest but also a defensive slugfest with the Seahawks coming out on top.
They sacked Bears' rookie quarterback Caleb Williams a season-high seven times. Big Leonard Williams, 10th year in the league, got two of them. Look at him flexing.
When the game was on the line late in the fourth the Bears did have a chance to tie or take the lead, but a leaping Tariq Woolen intercepted Williams' pass to seal Seattle's 6-3 win in the lowest scoring game of the year.
Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said Thursday games are funky and not a lot of time to prep, but a win is a win. The Seahawks are 9-7 -- still in the playoff hunt.
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GENO SMITH, QUARTERBACK, SEATTLE SEAHAWKS: At this point we don't care how we get wins; we just want to win games. I don't care if it was 5-4, we got the W. But yeah man, it was a hard fought game. Our defense was lights out. They finished it at the end right there. I mean, that was big time.
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WIRE: Now, on the other end of the scoring spectrum Toledo and Pitt set a bowl record six overtimes in the GameAbove Sports Bowl in Detroit. They kept scoring and scoring. Toledo's players actually rushed the field two times, Danny, during extra periods thinking they'd won. Well, good thing -- eventually, those Rockets did get the win 48-46 after scoring a two-point conversion that Pitt could not match. Toledo's defense making the final game-winning stop. Head coach Jason Candle gets his third bowl win.
Pitt ends the season on a six-game losing streak after starting the year 7-0.
To the NBA where the Thunder were looking to rack up a ninth-straight win facing the Pacers, and that they did getting an MVP performance from Shae Gilgeous-Alexander. Last season's runner-up was a one-man wrecking crew tying his career high with 45 points to go with seven rebounds and eight assists.
OKC head coach Mark Daigneault called his point guard's performance a masterpiece.
The Thunder win 120-114. They now have a 3 1/2-game lead atop the Western Conference.
The Atlanta Hawks absolutely stunned the Chicago Bulls with a historic 50-point fourth quarter. Chicago was up 21 with a minute to go in the third, but Atlanta and Trae Young came storming back. Young scoring 16 of his 27 in the fourth quarter, including that tying three.
Now, the Hawks pulled ahead with under two to go. Look at the huge block by De'Andre Hunter. He poured in 25 off the bench.
And with 90 seconds to go Atlanta's Jalen Johnson gets the steal and then finishes with a team high 30 points.
The Hawks win 141-133 after pulling off a near-perfect fourth quarter.
And finally, before the ball drops to ring in the new year in Times Square the puck will drop at Chicago's iconic Wrigley Field for the NHL Winter Classic. The Blackhawks will face off against the St. Louis Blues in the annual outdoor game.
Ticketholders, bundle up. The forecast calls for a chance of rain or snow showers with a high in the middle to upper 30s. For those staying cozy at home you can watch on our sister channel TNT or stream it on MAX. Coverage starts at 4:00 p.m. Eastern on Tuesday.
This will be the first time, Danny, that the game is on New Year's Eve. Typically, New Year's Day. So what a way to ring in the new year for those hockey fans.
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FREEMAN: Man, I love it.
And by the way, I've just got to say after LeBron threw down the gauntlet and saying that Christmas and Christmas week is the NBA's week, after last night's NFL game and Ice Trae -- I mean, like, they made their statement this week, haven't they?
WIRE: Yeah. Point LeBron on that one. He got it.
FREEMAN: Exactly.
Coy Wire, thanks so much.
WIRE: You got it.
FREEMAN: All right. Coming up next on CNN THIS MORNING questions mount over what took down a passenger jet in Kazakhstan as investigators dig up new clues in their search for an answer.
Plus, the DOGE co-chairs' defense of big tech's foreign-born hires draws uproar from the MAGA base and some support -- you're not going to believe it -- from across the aisle.
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BILL DE BLASIO, FORMER MAYOR OF NEW YORK CITY: I agree with Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. I think they're pointing out the reality that we're living.
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