is tsa's plan here? are they going to discipline or even fire employees who are not fully vaccinated? is this going to happen before the holidays? i don't understand how tsa can staff airport check lines over the holidays and beyond without these valuable frontline employees. i'm also concerned there's been a dramatic increase in the amount of violence and disruptive passenger in surface transportation systems at our airports and in flight. these incidents need to stop, and i want to hear from our witnesses on how tsa and the federal air marshals can play an increased role in transportation security. i look forward to learning from the witnesses today and what they're hearing from their membership on these crucial issues. transportation is crucial to the moving of goods, services, and people. i yield back and thank you. >> i thank the ranking member. i would now like to recognize the chairman of the full committee, the gentleman from mississippi, mr. thompson, for an opening statement. >> thank you very

is tsa's plan here? are they going to discipline or even fire employees who are not fully vaccinated? is this going to happen before the holidays? i don't understand how tsa can staff airport check lines over the holidays and beyond without these valuable frontline employees. i'm also concerned there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of violence and disruptive passenger in surface transportation systems at our airports and in-flight. these incidents need to stop, and i want to hear from our witnesses on how tsa and the federal air marshals can play an increased role in transportation security. i look forward to learning from the witnesses today and what they're hearing from their memberships on these important issues. transportation workers are crucial to the country's moving of goods, services and people. our economy cannot rebuild without them. i yield back and thank you. >> i think the ranking member. i would like now to recognize the chairman of the full committee, the gentleman from mississ

what is tsa's plan here? are they going to discipline or even fire employees who are not fully vaccinated? is this going to happen before the holidays? i don't understand how tsa can staff airport checkpoints over the holidays and beyond without these valuable and skilled front line employees. i'm also concerned that there has been a dramatic increase in the amount of violent and disruptive passengers in surface transportation systems at our airports and in flight. these incidents need to stop, and i want to hear from our witnesses on how tsa and the federal air marshals can play an increased role in transportation security. i look forward to learning from the witnesses today and what they're hearing from their memberships on these important issues. >> transportation workers are crucial to the country's movement of goods, services, and people. our economy cannot rebuild without them. madam chairwoman, i yield back, and thank you. >> i thank the ranking member. now i'd like to recognize the chairman of the ful

this is for missus neuhaus of the tsa. i won't get after you for the charitable service sometimes i see people get because sometimes in knoxville tennessee it's great and a couple months ago they issued plans for that companies. how much time did you give the impacted stakeholders to respond and provide feedback on those directives? >> thank you for recognizing the officers particularly in tennessee. frankly among the top in the country so thank you for that complement. with respect to the transit we followed a very robust rubric of engagement i will give you an example for aviation we utilize to the requirements into programs into provided ample notice and comment both verbally and in writing in multiple sessions, and we've also as i mentioned in my opening to the ranking member, we've taken that seatback and updated definitions of the cybersecurity incident so we've taken that seriously. with respect to the partners i mentioned earlier in the testimony, we have embarked on a robust engagement at the ceo level to engage o

a tsa agent leaps into action after a baby stops breathing at a security checkpoint. how her experience from a previous job helped her save the day. >>> plus, another accuser comes forward against actor chris noth. and tesla says it will restrict a popular feature following a federal probe and this cop giving a safety briefing about to get a rude awakening. we'll show you what happened next. it's friday, december 24th. >>> good friday morning, everyone. i'm andrew dymburt. >> and i'm rhiannon ally in for mona. we want to begin this morning with the surging omicron variant looming over holiday gatherings all across the country. americans have been waiting in long lines scrambling to get their hands on a limited supply of covid tests. >> at least two big airlines have canceled hundreds of flights on this christmas eve as crews are impacted by the alarming spike in covid cases. this morning, the omicron surge having a major effect on travel as millions take to the roads and air. overnight major airlines like delta and united proactively canceling hundreds of flights sche

networks and airplanes, what two aviation giants are calling for, and the new way to skip the long tsa lines >>> and who mailed a box of cash to students in need. the christmas mystery inspiring america. >>> good evening more and more of us tonight know someone in our circle that tested positive for covid, the now dominant omicron variant infecting americans at eye watering speed tonight, president biden updating the administration's covid battle plan, promising millions of free at home covid testing kits to be mailed to us on demand. more testing sites and deploying military troops to aid hospitals. this evening, more cities, schools, and businesses are reimposing covid rules and protocols amid skyrocketing case numbers. the president imploring the unvaccinated to take the shot as a patriotic duty while throwing his full faith behind booster shots as the administration's preparedness for omicron comes under sharp scrutiny in a few minutes, my interview with the u.s. surgeon general. let's begin with gabe gutierrez. >> reporter: with the omicron variant running rampant. >> we should al

got cleared, get the tsa pre-check -- what are some things they can do? >> lines are long for a lot of reasons. they are checking a lot of covid documentation. lines can be a beast to deal with. i would say check your flight status early and make sure you are showing up at the right time for your flight. don't check a bag if you do not have to. one fewer line to stand in. and then, cross your t's and your one of those underrated places just amazing -- just waiting to be discovered. kristen: we will be here every weekday at 3:00 on air and on livestream answe >>> breaking tonight, as we come on the air. former police officer kim potter found guilty. a jury today convicting potter of both first and second-degree manslaughter in the fatal shooting of daunte wright, a 20-year-o 20-year-old, in a traffic stop. potter showed little emotion. a stark contrast to her time on the stand. she faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. potter taken into custody and held without bail. what daunte wright's family is saying tonight. >>> also developing tonight, the

the busier days are ahead, according to the tsa. this barely ends this five-day strike where we saw 2 million people a day at airports nation wide. tomorrow will be one of the busiest days according to the tsa. that really kicks off this rush between tomorrow and january 3rd. the tsa says a total of 20 million people will fly. but triple a points out to us that the vast majority of people will drive. 100 million people will drive 50 miles or more. triple a points out that number is only down 7% from where we were before the pandemic. >> the cdc director emphasizes people should not travel if symptomatic about covid. but she also says this about people who worry they might get sick while traveling. >> it is not really the act of being on the airplane or being in the car that puts one at risk. what puts one at risk is the behavior and mitigation strategies that may not have been used in the week prior to gathering. >> that's been a fairly consistent thing throughout the pandemic. the airplanes themselves are actually not great vectors

the tsa butter knife think i'm a total up. the tsa's latency garbage. she put those knives and that's all and probably got on the plane with a grenade launcher. >> my god! >> i have a buddy was a monster pothead and he gets his weed back in california and new york by putting a big bottle of water in his bag and they find the bottle of water his bag and they hold up the line and they take the water out and they dump it and he walks through with his weed. every time! every time! but anyway, this is the scarier point. the irs thing, the fact that we are now so broken under joe biden, we are so broke under joe biden that we are now relying on drug dealers and thieves to adhere to the honor system to pay us. that means we are like two steps away from jill biden starting in only fans. it's bad. >> emily: we are in bad shape but don't worry, remember my message from the a block, 2022 will be better. coming up, will new chinese technology pray on [indiscernible]? ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> emily: is hunter biden's employer also a mind destroyer? and will robots in cour

a rookie tsa officer saved the life of an infant at an airport security checkpoint. look at the effort she went through. jumping over the conveyor belt there, a young mother realizing her 2-month-old son cannot breathe. that officer grabbed the baby, doing the infant heimlich maneuver, if you ever have taken a course for cpr, that's not an easy thing to do, morales joined the tsa a few months ago, her old job, she was an emt for decades. >> there you go. >> skills that always come in handy, it is great. perfect good stuff. more people are heading to the airport. jim, good stuff. sharing the screen with you this morning, my friend. over the last few months. i hope you have a nice break ahead. >> you too. to all the folks watching, please enjoy the holidays. we really wish you the best and healthy christmas. the christmas eve coverage continues next. was made possible by what you don't see. cause when you're not looking, i go to work. ♪ strength isn't a given. it's grown. it's earned and tested. ♪ we all have the strength to see what's possible. it's up to us to un

the tsa said tomorrow will be one of the busiest days for air travel. but aaa reminds us that the vast majority of people will drive. 100 million people traveling 50 miles or more, it projects, that number off only about 7% from what we saw back in 2019. dr. fauci said it is safe to travel. so long as you are fully vaccinated and boosted and airlines underscore that flying is safe and you're chances of getting covid on an airplane are low because of the heavily filtered air on board and the federal transportation mask mandate now still in place until march 18th, 2022 and the tsa and the faa announced a new partnership, if you defy that rule you could lose your tsa pre-check for good. wolf. >> not good if you want to avoid waiting in long lines. pete muntean at reagan national. thank you very much. >>> just ahead, we're on verdict watch as the jury in the manslaughter slaughter of kim potter deliberates for a third day. feel stuck with student loan debt? move to sofi and feel what it's like to get your money right. ♪ ♪ move your student loan debt to

the tsa screened 1.98 million people. that number, 99% than the same day back in 2019, only off by about 2,300 people. can you believe it? you know, the busiest days are ahead according to the tsa, you mentioned that tomorrow is going to be one of the busiest days. dr. anthony fauci says you can feel okay about traveling so long as you're vaccinated and boosted. travelers we have been talking to tell us they feel pretty confident. here's what they said. >> it's a little nerve racking, but when we flew out here, it was definitely safe. everything was wiped down. you could tell it was clean, so, you know, definitely a little nerve racking because you're always going to be nervous but i feel confident that we're going to be okay. >> reporter: we are in the rush now. the tsa says 20 million people in total will travel between tomorrow and january 3rd. aaa reminds us that, you know, a lot of people will drive, 100 million people in total will hit the road 50 miles or more. that number only about 7% off from what we saw back in

joan didion was 87. >>> a tsa agent was caught on video saving a baby's life, and covid problems hit a college football bowl game. those are some of the headlines report today's hawaii bowl has been canceled after the university of hawaii pulled out of the game. the paper says at least 30 hawaii players, coaches, and staff are in quarantine after testing positive for covid. cases have been surging in honolulu the past two weeks. the team also cited season-ending injuries and transfers. hawaii's opponent in the game, memphis, did not report any positive cases. >>> space.com says the james webb space telescope is on the launchpad on the coast of south america ready for lift-off tomorrow. the telescope will be the biggest science instrument ever sent into space. it's 100 times more powerful than the hubble space telescope launched three decades ago. >> there will be many powerful tools that this telescope will have that just -- have not been available to us in the past. so it's going to be -- that's why it's revolutionary and why we're all excited about it. >> the webb telescope is expe

tsa confirming it was busier, 2.6 million folks went through the tsa. in 2020 at the height of covid, it was a little under a million, and before that you can see the numbers going up. i will be curious to see how many folks go through during christmas and the new year's season. we're live at sfo, cierra johnson for "today in the bay." >> thank you. >>> san francisco is one of the first cities in the country to issue the vaccine mandate for city employees. about six months ago there was concern it would lead to terminations and severe staffing sources. firefighters refused to get the shots unless the city met a long list of demands. and now most of the members are vaccinated. >> there are less than 20 who have chosen not to be vaccinated. so yeah, we're in a good place. >> the firefighters union president said the city put those unvaccinated members on unpaid leave this month and union leaders say they have filed lawsuits aiming -- aimed at the city and they have allowed them to collect or occur sick leave and vaccination time while they are considering

you are seeing tsa agents compared to one week ago, the number of infected tsa agents has tripled. more than 17 00 tsa agents are not at work today. but then the faa also coming out this morning and saying they're seeing an up tick in cases that are taking out their employees and that folks should expect further delays within these airports because frankly, they can't handle the amount of traffic that is usually expected here at the turn of the year. but you're also dealing with these airlines. with flight attendants and other staff and the pilots who are coming up among those 500,000 individuals on a daily basis with positive tests. that is where you are seeing cancellations galore. just today, just today, new year's eve, 14 00 cancellations in the united states. 3,000 globally. you're seeing pockets from seattle, 300 cancelled flights, down to denver which was the denver international airport, just a few miles from where the wildfires were taking place. nearly 300 cancelled flights today. what you see is a backlog of travelers. over the course of more than a week now, 1,000 cance

the tsa says a total of 20 million people will fly over that ten-day stretch. we have seen lots and lots of people get tested for coronavirus at airports. a long line at b.w.i./thurgood marshall airport. airlines continue to insist that flying is safe, so safe that they are asking the cdc to shorten the isolation period for somebody who gets coronavirus who is fully vaccinated. right now it's ten days. airlines want that to go down to five days. they say that it will allow them to keep more workers on the job and avoid operational issues at airlines like we saw this fall. pete muntean, cnn, regan national airport. >>> thousands of travelers in australia are looking at a blue christmas as their flights are being canceled. at least 80 domestic flights in and out of sydney have been called off today. cnn's selena wang is following live in tokyo. we heard how covid is throwing so many travel plans in the u.s., now in australia as well. >> reporter: exactly. unfortunately this holiday season is turning out to be incredibly stressful and frustrating for travelers aro

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and according to the tsa airports are expected see the most passengers on thursday. >> december 23rd and january 3rd, the monday afternoon years reporting from san jose international >> and for covid tessa skyrocketed in recent weeks. that's because of the omicron variant. also the fact that people are getting together for the holidays. the last-minute push is fairly long lines of pharmacies and testing sites across the u.s. whether it's people in cars or standing in line. doctors say you might be able to skip the crowds by getting tested at your doctor's office or your healthcare provider. a lot of people in the bay area are struggling to find at home test. now there's one supervisor in contra, costa county whose trying to help out his community. his name is john joya. he represents west contra costa county. this week. his office in el serino is giving out covid test kits for free lines outside the office show the community is taking advantage of that. these are the lines while the supervisors led to help. he's disappointed the test of not been more widely available for folks. >> co

. >> reporter: meanwhile from clogged roads to clogged airports, the tsa reports screening 2 million passengers wednesday, slightly more than prepandemic 2019. >> we're all got a our boosters. >> reporter: a new york officer hailed as a hero a veteran emt climbed over a tsa belt no perform a heimlich and save a choking baby. >> reporter: thank goodness with fast thinking tsa officers n. northern virginia, police were in a chasing, a suspect hit a trooper vehicle with an officer inside and rolled the vehicle. other officers gave chase. they eventually caught up with a suspect. the officer taken to a nearby hospital in good condition we are told it really underscores the exact risk we have been talking about with speed, distracted driving, programs impairment being something that's a constant concern for troopers out on the road nationwide. >> it can be a dangerous time of year, tom, thank you >>> a fourth woman has come forward accusing actor chris noth of sexual assault a singer/songwriter alleged the star assaulted her in 2002 at a virtual press conference with her lawyer, she said

now there's another prim between the tsa and the faa. if you don't follow the rule, you could lose your precheck status forever. step out of line, you lose it. >> that's like losing a kidney. pete muntean, thanks so much. >>> the supreme court will take up cases challenging the biden administration's vaccine mandates in the new year. the high court is scheduled to hear arguments in that case january 7th. white house says it is confident in the legal authority of the mandates for large employers and certain health care workers. a supreme court analyst joins me now. joan, you know this court well. in many cases it's had an expansive view of presidential authority, conservative members. where do they stand on this? >> reporter: good morning, jim. this is an uphill battle for biden administration. the occupational safety and health administration's new requirement is that for employers of 100 or more employees, you have to either have them vaccinated or have regular testing. now, you know, osha says this comes out of its authority over prote

it comes at a time where tsa says travel numbers to back to where the -- are back to where they were before the pandemic. on wednesday the 22, tsa says travel numbers were higher tha day then where they were on the same day back in 2019. as far as the specific for the cancellations, the delta canceled 121 flights for it is unclear how many impact to the bay area airports but according to flight aware. 29 flights canceled at sfo, most of them are united. >> all it takes is a few breakthrough cases to have a situation where there is some type of meltdown or massive operational disruption. ryan: again, citing covid covidc reason. we did reach out to delta and united who say they exhausted as many resources as possible to try and prevent the cancellations. that moves schedules around, is moving planes around to see if they can get these flights filled. but here we are in christmas eve and a lot of flights canceled. that would be a beacon convenience for a lot of people trying to do their holiday travel. ryan curry, abc7 news. >> a group of democratic lawmakers are calling to require dome

by the way, a new partnership between the faa and tsa. if you defy the mask rule, you could lose precheck status for good. >> mr. mayor, thank you very much. i want to know, people on twitter always ask why i call you the mayor of reagan national airport or the world's most interesting well. it's because you cover your beat so well. it really is astounding. thank you for everything you do. i hope you have a wonderful holiday, pete. >> reporter: merry christmas, john. >> might i also add pete muntean will answer any question you have about aviation quickly. and i feel the smile in the email. >>> royal caribbean announcing a covid outbreak on the cruise ship, the second in less than a week. the "miami herald" reporting 55 have the virus. the ship has been denied entry since leaving florida on saturday. the ship will stay at sea until it's planned return sunday. the cruise liner symphony of the seas had 50 people test positive earlier this week. >>> breaking overnight, texas authorities are responding to a major industrial accident at the ex

we're tsa. it's business as usual. they say they're taking precautions to keep staff and passengers say tsa officers changing gloves after each pack down along with disinfecting and everyone must wear masks that requirement echoed by doctor anthony fauci. when you do travel. >> make sure that when you are in congregate settings like a crowded airport. that you keep your mask on at all times. fauci suggesting family gatherings are ok as long as everyone is vaccinated boosted and tested ahead of time. >> well, if you are one of the millions of people driving this christmas aaa has released their list of probably the worst times for you to be on the road. so this is what you want to avoid here in the bay area. they say the busiest highways going to be interstate 80 from that junction that 5.80 near san pablo dam, road boulevard. so they're predicting traffic on that stretch of road is going to be well above normal. about a 166% of normal. they say. and the worst day to expect is december. 23rd between 5, 37 30 in the even

tsa releasing information of the number of folks that went through tsa over that holiday weekend. 2.4 million folks went through tsa this year alone during that holiday stretch. this time last year a little under a million folks. so the testing done here at sfo could be vital and not only identifying the strains of the new variant but also additional variants if there are any for those taking the optional test as they arrive here in the united states from those other countries. so some good things being done here at sfo to notify folks of that variant. live at sfo, cierra johnson for "today in the bay." >> certainly a big concern. >>> san francisco is one of the first cities in the country to issue a vaccine mandate for city employees about six months ago leading to concerns it would lead to terminations and severe shortages. firefighters submitted a letter refusing to get that shot unless the city met a long list of demands. now the fire chief says that most of the 1700 members are vaccinated. >> and there are less than 20 who have chosen not to be vaccinated. so, yeah, we're in a go

the tsa says the busiest days are ahead. thursday, tomorrow, december 23rd will be one of the busiest, it says. now, dr. anthony fauci says, sure, you can feel safe traveling right now so long as you're vaccinated and boosted, and travellers tell us they do feel pretty confident about getting out right now. here's what they're telling us. >> you can only do what you can do for yourself, you know. what everybody else is doing you have no control over, so that's the scary part, but i want to go have fun and be safe and mask up and just try if you see somebody doing something they shouldn't be doing. other than that, i feel pretty comfortable! we >> the tsa projects 20 million people will fly between tomorrow, december 23rd, a andjanuary 3rd. the vast majority of people will drive. on trips 50 miles or more. that number's only up by about 7% in 2019. the omicron variant not really stopping people here. >> i was watching an interview for people's masks to be above their nose and mouth because i've had to travel recently and ther

. >> reporter: meanwhile, from clogged roads to clogged airports, the tsa reports screening two million passengers wednesday, slightly more than pre-pandemic 2019. >> we're all vaccinated you know, we all got our boosters. >> reporter: tonight a police officer is being hailed as a hero a veteran emt climbed over a tsa belt to perform the heimlich and save a choking baby back here in northern virginia tonight, some breaking news. a state trooper's car hit and rolled by a driver who then fled down the highway leading police on a chase. he was caught. the police officer taken to a nearby hospital lester >> all right, tom. be careful out there thank you. >>> now to the battle over the capitol riot investigation. former president trump asking the supreme court today to block the january 6th committee from getting his white house records after two lower courts rejected his claims of executive privilege. the committee had asked the court to rule quickly on the appeal tough talk today from russia's vladimir putin at his annual end of the year news conference putin pointing fingers at the u.s. a

we're tsa. it's business as usual. they say they're taking precautions to keep staff and passengers say tsa officers changing gloves after each pack down along with disinfecting and everyone must wear masks that requirement echoed by doctor anthony fauci. when you do travel. >> make sure that when you are in congregate settings like a crowded airport. that you keep your mask on at all times. fauci suggesting family gatherings are ok as long as everyone is vaccinated boosted and tested ahead of time. >> 9.51 is the time. if you are one of the millions of people that are going to be driving this christmas aaa has released their list of the worst times to do that. so here's what you need to know in the bay area, aaa predicts that the busiest highway is going to be interstate 80 just right there near the 5.80 junction near down boulevard. they were predicting traffic on that stretch of road to be about a 166% of normal. so avoid that one. if you can the worst day will be december 23rd where they predict between 5.30, at 07

your tsa pre-check for good. christine, paula? >> lose pre-check. they are removing the bypass to hear coronavirus vaccine mandate for large employers and certain health care workers. the court set oral arguments for january 7. for now the court is leaving in place the status quo around the requirements. the employer mandate isn't set to be enforced until january 10th, and the government won't implement the health care worker mandate while the legal challenges are playing out. the white house says it is confident in the legal authority for both policies. >>> all right. just about ten minutes past the hour. republicans on the january 6 committee, they want to speak with congressman jim jordan. what he could uncover about donald trump's actions during the riot. e where cancers can be cured. strokes s can be reversed. joints can be 3-d printed. and there isn't one definition of what well feels like.e. there are millions. we're using our world to make your world a world of well. ♪ ♪ to all the kisses... ...that l

barely a wait at tsa precheck or cleared. because so many flights have been canceled. but for some traveler, they knew about the cancellations since wednesday, earlier in the week, with delta cancelling 250 flights because of the weather. of course, as boris mentioned, the biggest impact here is the coronavirus the chrom omicron v impacting staff. a woman we spoke with, her name is roberta, she's on her way to new york to see her family, it's a surprise. listen to her concerns as she travels. >> christmas, you know, you want to be with your family, stuff like that. covid messed up everything. i tell you, new york got hit real bad. i moved here during that time. it was shaky, so now i'm going back for the first time. you want to see everybody. even when you live near people, you're still not sure. i had covid. i know. you can't move. it's different. >> reporter: she sells she's on her way back to new york to surprise her familiar i spoke to another woman who's going to see her grandson for the first time ever. he's 4 years old. with the pandemic she didn't want to get h

we're tsa. it's business as usual. they say they're taking precautions to keep staff and passengers say tsa officers changing gloves after each pack down along with disinfecting and everyone must wear masks that requirement echoed by doctor anthony fauci. when you do travel. >> make sure that when you are in congregate settings like a crowded airport. that you keep your mask on at all times. fauci suggesting family gatherings are ok as long as everyone is vaccinated boosted and tested ahead of time. >> well, if your. >> one of the millions people driving this christmas aaa has released their list of the worst times to drop. so this is what you need to know here in the bay area. they're predicting that the busiest highway will be i 80 northbound from the 5.80 junction near san dam boulevard heading up towards sacramento. they're predicting traffic on that stretch of road is going to be in their estimate. a 166% of normal is pretty exact. it's going to be bad. the worst day expected is about december 23rd between 5.30, a

all the support services we need, faa, tsa guidelines. disruptive of that. >> reporter: those complaints have been off the charts. flight ant ten attendants plead. chris van cleave, cbs news. >> facility about the size of 30 football fields was heavily damaged. one employee is reported missing. qvc is still assessing the impact of products and orders. >>> wreaths across america project. at arlington national cemetery more than 250,000 wreaths were placed at head stones of fallen men and women. more than 2.3 million wreaths were placed on head stones nationwide and overseas. >>> still ahead, used car sales soor, why it's a seller's markets. lobsters in canadian waters, we'll show you why. and later, a miraculous recovery just in time for christmas. >> oliver: supply chain issues have sent the prices or the cars and trucks soaring in this pandemic economy. some in-demand models are now worth more used than new. that's providing some owners with an opportunity. cbs's errol barnett reports in weekend journal. >> reporter: one have cashed in o

wednesday, the tsa screened more than 2 million passengers. that's more people than on the same day in 2019, before the pandemic. the weather in the west is complicating the journey for many. these images are from northern california. torrential rain and heavy mountain snow expected right into christmas day. chief meteorologist ginger zee is standing by with the forecast, but first, abc's alex perez is in chicago. >> reporter: tonight, fiery crashes as millions take to the roads. in jackson county, wisconsin, freezing rain to blame for this chain reaction crash this morning. up to 40 cars and 20 semi-trucks, some engulfed in flames. at least 20 people injured. the highway still shut down tonight. that system heading into the northeast. meanwhile, in the west -- >> we do have some breaking news -- >> wait, wait, wait -- >> reporter: our sacramento affiliate, news 10, broadcasting on the freeway before dawn. watch again, that car hydroplaning across the road and into the ditch. the news crew going back to help, hit by another vehicle. in san mat

a veteran emt climbed over a tsa belt to perform the heimlich and save a choking baby. back here in northern virginia tonight, some breaking news. a state trooper's car hit and rolled by a driver who then fled down the highway leading police on a chase. he was caught. the police officer taken to a nearby hospital. lester? >> all right, tom. be careful out there. thank you. >>> now to the battle over the capitol riot investigation. former president trump asking the supreme court today to block the january 6th committee from getting his white house records after two lower courts rejected his claims of executive privilege. the committee had asked the court to rule quickly on the appeal. tough talk today from russia's vladimir putin at his annual end of the year news conference. putin pointing fingers at the u.s. amid rising tensions with ukraine. we get more from keir simmons. >> reporter: president putin openly wielding a diplomatic carrot and stick at his news conference today. new satellite images this week show russia's continuing military escalation on ukraine's borde

wednesday, the tsa screened more than 2 million passengers. that's more people than on the same day in 2019, before the pandemic. the weather in the west is complicating the journey for many. these images are from northern california. torrential rain and heavy mountain snow expected right into christmas day. chief meteorologist ginger zee is standing by with the forecast, but first, abc's alex perez is in chicago. >> reporter: tonight, fiery crashes as millions take to the roads. in jackson county, wisconsin, freezing rain to blame for this chain reaction crash this morning. up to 40 cars and 20 semi-trucks, some engulfed in flames. at least 20 people injured. the highway still shut down tonight. that system heading into the northeast. meanwhile, in the west -- >> we do have some -- wait, wait, wait. >> reporter: our sacramento affiliate, news 10, broadcasting on the freeway before dawn. watch again, that car hydrplaning across the road and into the ditch. the news crew going back to help, hit by another vehicle. in san mateo county, two peopl

just in the last week the number of tsa agents with positive covid has tripled. that's triple the number of tsa agents that are no longer working in the airports. the faa also saying today they are dealing with an increase in the number of covid patients and that passengers should expect delays here in the days ahead, but you've also got to take a look at the weather here. ahead of new year's eef, you are looking at winter storm free a hitting the west today, making its way through the midwest overnight. slamming into iowa, nebraska before making its way to michigan, ohio, western new york tomorrow. only complicating. chicago, expecting the heaviest snowfall yet for the entire year. this is a really tough time as the airline industry works to try to move passengers along, but the reality is there are going to be thousands of folks stuck away from home here this weekend. >> with all that said, i love seeing you outside la guardia in a light jacket like that on new year's eve in new york. it's so rare. it is so warm here. i got to ask you about cruises. >> it is ni

the tsa has now screened more than 2 million people every day since thursday. cnn aviation correspondent pete muntean joins us live from reagan airport. people are keeping their holiday plans, it's understandable. are you seeing any new measures in place at the airport to acam date for the rise in infections? >> reporter: no big changes yet, jim. remember early in the pandemic, there weren't many changes very quickly to begin with. so many people are having that go/no go discussion but we're seeing millions of people are still going regardless of these new infection rates. the tsa screened 2.12 million people at airports across the country just yesterday. that is the fourth straight day that we've seen higher than 2 million people at airports nationwide, in fact the number on friday the highest number we have seen since the monday after thanksgiving. it's clear a lot of people have a lot of confidence in traveling right now. there were long lines at airports across the country yesterday from austin to atlanta to boston. dr. anthony fauci says it's important to

tsa expects 20 million will fly nationwide between now and january 3. >> going to see family in fern dale washington. >> this is the season where people love gathering with family but there is fear that we can see surge in covid infections. omicron concerns are not stopping travelers. >> of course but we are all vaccinated, got our boosters. we have been looking forward to this trip so we've made sure we stay healthy and safe. >> i have been flying quite a bit. i think we have to learn to live with covid and go on and just take our precautions. >> tsa says it screened nearly 2 million people yesterday alone. a lot of people taking to the skies. >> justin, thank you. >>> omicron variant of covid-19 is in all 50 states and has led to explosion of cases. there is a growing struggle nationwide just to get tested for the virus. this is video of cbs in san ramon for this morning. people lined up for hours outside to get tested before the holidays. long lines continued inside as well. a customer tells kpix5 that cvs was expected to get a fresh shipment of tests today. more than 670,000 new

the tsa says a total of 20 million people will fly over that ten-day stretch. we have seen lots and lots of people get tested for coronavirus at airports. this long line at thurgood marshal airport, folks tell us they were getting tested because of international travel requirements or before holiday gatherings. airlines continue to insist that flying is safe, so safe that they're asking the cdc to shorten the isolation period for somebody who gets coronavirus who is fully vaccinated. right now it's ten days. airlines want that to go down to five days. they say it will allow them to keep more workers on the job and avoid operational issues at airlines like we saw this fall. pete muntean, cnn, reagan national airport. >>> thousands of travelers in australia are looking at a blue christmas as their flights are being canceled. at least 80 domestic flights in and out of sydney have been called off today. jetstar blamed a shortage of frontline staff who have come in contact with someone infected with covid. cnn's selina wang is following developments live this hour i

this specially trained tsa officer in the right place at the right time. mike: we have not even put this storm to bed and i am looking at tonight's storm because it is stronger with embedded downpours , which means localized flooding possible. this is the one that will bring us the beginning of our before that drink turns to drinks, make a plan to get home safe. just call a friend, a cab, and get a rideshare. whatever you do, don't let drunk drive. go safely, california. hi honey! hi mommy! oh i missed you! you just want to video call the kids. ok. hush little baby...don't say a word... but if slow upload speeds turns your goodnight call into an accidental horror movie... can you hear me? shut it down. just remember. you're not a bad mom. you just need better internet. at&t fiber delivers faster upload speeds for more reliable video calls. get at&t fiber, plans starting at $35 a month for a year. limited availability in select areas. call 1.877.only.att. out. limited availability in select areas. hair, done. fit, fantastic! marijuana. not so fast. remember

complained about, but those who ultimately were fined, about 315, put them on the you can't receive tsa precheck in the future whether or not that actually happens remains to be seen it will be up to the tsa which is in charge of that one last note. take a look at boeing and airbus the reason we are showing you these two is because the ceos of these companies have written a letter to the head of the faa saying the altimeter rule, which is expected to go into effect on january 5th, they think it should not go into effect, that it could impact commercial airline service around the country. that is the story, jon, that will play out over the next couple of weeks as the airlines and now the heads of boeing and airbus have said this is not a good idea. you need to change the 5g spectrum in certain areas because if you turn off the altimeter you are going to impact a number of flights, many flights in different parts of the country starting january 5th. >> okay. phil, i want to go back to the airlines because interesting to me, the cta sent out a note about cefs, the consumer electronics show

the warning from the tsa to holiday travelers ♪ i see trees of green ♪ ♪ red roses too ♪ ♪ i see them bloom for me and you ♪ (music) ♪ so i think to myself ♪ ♪ oh what a wonderful world ♪ >>> welcome back. playing games while you're driving. is it safe? that's the question the national highway traffic administration is asking tesla. they have opened up an investigation into tesla's game-play system. it's been available since last year. before that, games could only be played while the vehicles were in park. they are researching if the feature poses a distraction to drivers. >>> tsa could be unwrapping presents prematurely. they have been unwrapping gifts at security checkpoints if they appear suspicious. travelers are urged to keep packages unwrapped. snow globes should be maller than a tennis ball if you want them to go on the plane with you. >> got to keep that in mind. >>> the niners are in nashville. anthony flores joins us live from there with a preview of the game, next hey, angie! you forgot your phone! hey lou! angie forget her phone again? yep. lou! mom said she cou

. >> that's according to the tsa kron four's, gayle ong spoke to travelers at san jose international. >> the drop-off has been busy here at san jose international airport and travelers. i spoke with say they are taking their holiday destination. >> despite the rapid spread of the omicron variant people are still jetting off our backs i've done health experts say will being fully vaccinated and boosted minimizes the risk of being exposed to covid-19 infectious disease. experts like doctor george rutherford, a ucsf says once in the plane. >> never take off your mask when you fly. >> i think, you know, the one of the precautions you can take us to double mask to wear surgical masks n 95 or kn 95. >> or whatever you in order to really kind of cut down your respiratory. explosion. >> and opening the air vent above your seat that that's all fresh air. that's not that's not recycle. their doctor. rutherford says travel is considered safe as can be. it is where people are going. that health experts are concerned about. the risk is going to be once you get and we start to congregate people. >>

this is the highest since the tsa began tracking those numbers nearly 20 years ago. the surge in guns comes even as travel demand remains about 25% below the prepandemic pace of 2019. we'll be back after the break. >>> welcome back. you're watching nbc bay area news. this is a photo our kris sanchez shared on instagram. a parking meter wrapped in a knit scarf. you can keep up with kris on instagram, twitter and facebook. >>> no winner in last night's powerball drawing. the numbers last night were 2, 6, 9, 33, 39 and 11. the good news, jackpot has grown to $483 million. the next powerball drawing will be held saturday, january 1st and it could be a good start to start the new year. >>> five, four, three, two, one. happy new year! >> organizers of the times square new year's eve celebration tested the famous ball today to make sure it was ready to go. you heard the countdown, you saw the switch. the ball is climbing to the top of the pole high above time scare and will slowly make its way back down. the ball itself 12 feet in diameter, weighing nearly 12,000 pounds and

the moment when a tsa officer saves the day. officer ceceria morales leaping out a luggage conveyor belt when a mother finds her 2-month-old baby not breathing. she performed the heimlich on the baby and while we learned she's performed the heimlich many times before this was the first time morales had to use it on the infant. thank god. the baby is doing well. remarkable people doing remarkable things every day. >>> now to a very special gift this holiday season. we want you to meet yvette, she's the newest american girl doll and is making history as one of the iconic brands first bi-racial dolls giving many more boys and girls a chance to be seen. cnn's renee marsh has the story. >> i like her eyes and her freckles and her hair. >> reporter: misha is an 8-year-old from wisconsin who loves playing with dolls. >> show me your dolls. >> reporter: especially this doll, yvette. it's one of the first bi-racial american girl dolls on the market. >> i asked her when she does go to a normal store what is the majority of the dolls that