Becky Quick (1:47)

Good morning everybody. Welcome to Squawkbox right here on cnbc. I'm Becky Quick along with Andrew Ross Sorkin. Joe is off today and yes, happy almost Thanksgiving. If you're traveling today. We hope you're doing it safely. We hope you're doing it with decent weather. But we've got a lot to be thankful. We're going to think about that all day today.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (2:05)

Meanwhile, we're watching a bit of a soap opera drama play out because we're watching shares of AI players in video and Google parent Alphabet. Nvidia responded to concerns on Wall street that its dominance in AI could be threatened by Google's AI chips yesterday in a post on X Nvidia said the following in part quote, we are delighted by Google's success. They've made great advances in AI and we continue to supply to Google. Nvidia is a generation ahead of the industry. It's the only platform that runs every AI model does it everywhere computing is done. That followed of course, that report that said that one of Nvidia's key customers, Facebook parent Meta, could strike a deal with Google to use its Tensor processing units for Meta's data centers. Now shares Nvidia Falling more than 2.5% yesterday, Alphabet shares were up more than 1.5%. But to see Becky, both of these companies now sort of going back and forth, I mean for Nvidia to respond to even this report in its own way publicly, I can't tell if it's when you are a nice thing, a trolling thing or what.

Becky Quick (3:15)

Well, I feel like when you're the king, everybody's going to come at you in video is clearly the king, not only when it comes to semiconductors, but also just in terms of how important its report has been for the overall market theme. So a lot of pressure, a lot of focus on that company. There was another report about how they kind of responded to Michael Burry who has very publicly shorted the stock and how they responded to some of the sell side analysts refuting some of the claims that Michael Burry has put out there too. It's interesting there's different approaches to this, but they are a company that probably feels under attack from a lot of different places and maybe just wants to talk about things that they are proud of too. It's not too often that you see a company that garners so much attention not just from a sector but from the entire marketplace.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (4:10)

You know what's so interesting is Jensen of course, who runs Nvidia, I remember him telling me, I think about a year ago, two years ago, I actually saw the video, it seems to reappeared online where he, he says something about how, I mean he sort of lives in the Andy Grove mindset of only the paranoid survive, that even when you're succeeding you feel like you're failing and that he, that he doesn't wake up in the morning with great confidence, that he wakes up worried. And you know, this is one of those moments I'm sure, where these kinds of conversations probably make you more worried. But nonetheless, as you said, he is the king. He remains the king. And when you're the king, a lot of people come for you.

Becky Quick (4:52)

The other interesting thing is there's got to be some frustration, I would assume at the company because there were such high expectations heading into their earnings report last week. They beat on every metric, not just the expectations, but even the whisper numbers, they came out strong. The instant reaction in the stock was a positive one. And then over the course of the next day, the stock traded down anyway. So there's probably some frustration at the idea of what do you want from me, people? We're giving you everything you're asking for and much more. So maybe there's just a little frustration that's kind of come out of the reaction of what's happened. Obviously the market trades on a forward looking basis and when you are at the top, people are going to be looking for cracks anywhere. That's why some of the things have picked up so much with, with Alphabet, with Google recently. But it's an interesting marketplace. And again, if you look at Nvidia shares you mentioned, they were down about two and a half percent yesterday, I think. Take a look though. At year to date that stock is still performed very well over the year to date. And of course longer term it's even better performer. Yeah, okay, 31%. It's still up for the year to date. And longer term, again, that stock has been a phenomenal performer.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (6:08)

Meantime, President Trump saying he doesn't want to keep funding Obamacare health subsidies, but floated a possible extension of the benefits. Trump speaking with reporters aboard Air Force One as he flew to Florida for the Thanksgiving holiday. The health care subsidies were at the heart of the recent 43 day government shutdown and premiums could spike for some Americans if Congress cannot reach a deal. On Monday, Politico reported the White House was working on a framework that would extend those subsidies for two years with some eligibility limits. So we'll see if things shift there.

Becky Quick (6:42)

My guess is we will see something sooner rather than later because there has been a lot of political pressure that has built up as people are getting their premium notices for next year. The one thing to point out with this though is premiums are going up for everybody. Health care premiums, health care insurance premiums are going up for everybody, not just for those under the Affordable Care Act. And that is going to be a bigger issue. I think there's still a huge amount of pressure on Washington to come up with a way to kind of bend the cost curve on some of these things too, because subsidies for a portion of it are not going to address the overall issue. That, by the way, has been decades in the making. With health care cost outpacing the pace, the Rate of inflation elsewhere. But with inflation so much higher over the last four or five years and with those gains kind of still working their way through the system, particularly when it comes to things like health insurance, auto insurance, other places, I just see this as being a really big sticking point that there is going to have to be more than just the extension of subsidies to tackle in some of these things, too.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (7:48)

We'll see whether it happens and when it happens.

Becky Quick (7:50)

Yeah. Campbell's is defending the ingredients it uses in its products and placing an executive on temporary leave after he was allegedly caught on tape saying that the company made, in his words, highly processed food for poor people.

Cameron Costa (8:05)

We have for poor people, right? We have.

Arthur Brooks (8:10)

That's for poor people.

Commercial Announcer (8:12)

Who buys.

Cameron Costa (8:12)

Our people are pieces.

Arthur Brooks (8:16)

I don't buy cannabis products barely anymore. It's unhealthy now that I know what the in it. Even in a can of soup, I look at it, you can eat bioengineered meat. I don't want to eat a piece of chicken.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (8:29)

That came from a 3D printer.

Becky Quick (8:31)

That leaked audio purportedly from Martin Bally, Campbell's vice president of information technology, emerged as part of a lawsuit filed last week by a former Campbell's employee who accused Bally of making racist co comments. The former employee is also suing Campbell's for wrongful termination. In a statement, Campbell said that such language does not reflect our values and the culture of our company, adding, the comments heard on the recording about our food are not only inaccurate, they are patently absurd. The company went on to say that it has not been able to verify the validity of that recording. It hasn't been provided with a copy of it either. But, Andrew, obviously this is kicking up quite a storm.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (9:15)

That'll be another debate. People will have a debate about eating Campbell's at Thanksgiving dinner. I don't know. I don't know what to say about that. I don't know. What are you supposed to. What do you think should happen?

Becky Quick (9:27)

Well, look, I would. The one thing I would say is let's hear more about it. In these days of AI recordings, I mean, this is pretty inflammatory stuff. I will say that I look at everything with more skepticism than I did before, whether it's an audio recording, whether it's even video at this point, but we'll see. I'm sure somebody will get to the bottom of this. Highly inflammatory comments, troublesome from Campbell's. From all kinds of perspective. Insulting your customers. That's the absolute worst thing that could happen. Questions about the food. I guess that's another I will say, I know I've got some Campbell's Cream of mushroom soup for the green bean casserole that I'm going to be making tomorrow. But this is a so you're not.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (10:14)

Going to the supermarket is what you're saying. You're not going to replace your Campbell's soup after this situation?

Becky Quick (10:19)

Well, I use it for specified menus, I mean for specified recipes. And this is like an oldie, like the green bean casserole that has been in my family for generations. So it's just the way we make it. Keep making it that way.

Arthur Brooks (10:36)

Tease will be next.

Cameron Costa (10:37)

Up next on Squawk Pod, Harvard professor and happiness expert Arthur Brooks. He has some tips on how to make things a little bit more pleasant around the Thanksgiving table.

Arthur Brooks (10:49)

Every time you talk about politics, this is almost always the case. Not just at Thanksgiving. You get less happy.

Cameron Costa (10:58)

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Arthur Brooks (12:21)

Stand Andrew by in 3, 2, 1.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (12:24)

Q. Andrew, you're watching Squawk Box on CNBC this day before Thanksgiving. I'm Andrew Ross Sorkin along with Becky Quick. Joe is off today. Our next guest is going to help us navigate holiday anxiety and lagging consumer confidence, affordability concerns and most importantly, maybe some divisive political topics. Harvard Professor Arthur Brooks, he hosts the podcast Office Hours with Arthur Brooks is of course the best selling authority of the Happiness Files as a contributor for the Atlantic. Good morning to you. We always talk about getting around the Thanksgiving Day table and trying to have civil discourse. Arthur, I just want the tips and tricks for the civil discourse when you have some folks that you may not always agree with.

Arthur Brooks (13:05)

Yeah, no, Andrew, it looks like you're on the road someplace. Are you visiting family? Is that. What is it? Does this spark your interest in what's going to happen tomorrow to you?

Andrew Ross Sorkin (13:14)

I'm always trying to figure out how to have that. I need to have the civil discourse in the morning. You know, we do it over breakfast. It's called Squawk box.

Arthur Brooks (13:21)

Yeah, no, I hear you. And the truth of the matter is there's a lot written about this. There's a lot of research on this. Behavioral scientists have talked about not how to disagree less, but actually how to disagree better. And a couple of things to keep in mind for a lot of people who are going to their extended family. For example, there's Aunt Marge is going to be there, you don't see her but once a year and she's going to insist on talking about the federal government or something. And, and there's a couple of two don'ts that are actually just as important as the two do's. A couple of things to think about. The first is to remember that when you have a disagreement about something with somebody, you rarely see a contentious topic like politics that's actually not. You're not going to convince anybody. But what we want to do is persuade when we're arguing and we almost never persuade anybody when somebody is shut down when you're arguing with them, they have something that psychologists call the boomerang effect. And they actually believe their ideological viewpoint more strongly than when you started arguing with them. So that's the first thing to kind of, kind of game out a little bit and to be thinking about. And the second thing to keep in mind is that every time you talk about politics, this is almost always the case, not just at Thanksgiving. You get less happy. There's a lot of research that shows that the more you think and talk about politics, the less happy you're going to be. And that makes you less grateful. It's kind of the counteracting mechanism to the whole point point of Thanksgiving. So don't go in ready for a fight. And don't actually get into politics. Those are the two, two don'ts actually.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (14:46)

So here's my question. We sometimes at our table there's like a little bit of a rule with when certain topics go into certain places, sometimes someone will say, we're not talking about that, that's off limits. We gotta just ixnay that from the whole, whole discussion agenda. Yeah. Is that the appropriate way or not?

Arthur Brooks (15:04)

Well, you can make it explicit if you want, but what I recommend to people who are sort of the odd man out, I'm kind of the odd man out in many ways in my family discussions. I mean, all my kids are ideologically different than me and their spouses. As a matter of fact, my extended family, they're more conservative than I am. And that doesn't mean that we can't talk about these things, but it means that we have to not get into a big argument about it. And that requires kind of a, a skill on my part of leading the conversation into something that's more pleasant, that we all think about as a source of gratitude as opposed to a source of conflict in the family. Now we can talk about those things. We've known these differences exist the whole time, but life is short, man. Why would you want to talk about politics when you're around the Thanksgiving table?

Becky Quick (15:50)

How do you do that, Arthur? Do you steer it back to, oh, did you see the art project that my grandchild brought home last week?

Commercial Announcer (15:57)

Week?

Becky Quick (15:57)

I mean, is it more subtle than that?

Nicole Johnson (16:00)

Yeah.

Arthur Brooks (16:00)

Well, one of the things to actually be thinking about is to introduce a topic of your own gratitude, which is really important and say, you know, I got something. I'm going to say that I'm really, really grateful for. And it'll be a memory, it'll be a shared idea that you all have together. And especially when you're talking with extended family, when you have memories of something, when you reconstruct a memory of something that you, that you all share, that's something that people are really quite interested in as a matter of fact. So share shared values are a lot better than unshared ideological viewpoints, Arthur.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (16:31)

I have a different one which is involving kids in these discussions. So I now have 15 year old boys and actually a very, very vocal 8 year old too who likes to get in on all of this stuff. And I can't figure out am I supposed to. I love when they're debating these things, but then I also don't know if it's, it's gonna upset my mother or their mother in law or who knows what?

Arthur Brooks (16:55)

Yeah. Yeah. Well, one of the things that's actually worth talking about is by modeling the behavior that you actually want to see and coaching people in a very specific way to say, look, if we have any disagreement around the table, let's do it in a way that's actually not gonna upset people and that we can actually laugh about it in a particular way. And the most important thing that you can do, Andrew, is making sure that you're never the source of the bitterness in the first place. Now, here's how to do that, by the way. Look, we all have strong opinions for sure, but the way to look at this is to say, you know, if there's somebody who really disagrees with me around the table and is especially if they're impossible to coach and manage. Aunt Marge can't shut up. Is to actually think about it. Kind of like you were a social scientist in a field experiment. I've done so many of these experiments where I'm, you know, I'm sitting with people who disagree with each other and I'm just watching and learning and thinking about it kind of in that way will give you a lot better time and it'll give you kind of an equanimity that people will admire during the dinner.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (17:52)

Right? Arthur, we got a wrap. We want to wish you a happy Thanksgiving. Want to thank you for always helping us through, trying to keep us all a little happier. Very much appreciate it.

Arthur Brooks (18:02)

Thanks. Happy Thanksgiving to you. This is my Happy Thanksgiving.

Andrew Ross Sorkin (18:05)

I'll see you soon.

Becky Quick (18:06)

Yeah, Happy Thanksgiving. I was thinking serve a lot of wine or maybe that's part of the problem too.

Cameron Costa (18:12)

Coming up on Squawk Pod. An annual tradition here on Squawk, the Butterball turkey talk line. Director Nicole Johnson is one of many cooks standing by to help everyone in the kitchen this Thanksgiving. Just dial or text the hotline for your dinner needs.

Nicole Johnson (18:30)

Regardless if you stuff your turkey or not, you do want to make sure your turkey is done with your best friend on Thanksgiving Day. And that's your meat thermometer.

Cameron Costa (18:40)

Turkey tips right after this.

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Cameron Costa (19:15)

The right skills could make a difference. That's why our business programs teach you relevant skills you can take from the courseroom to the workplace. A different future is closer than you think with Capella University. Learn more at capella. Edu Black Friday More like Black Friday shop the DSW Black Friday sale and take 30% off almost all the shoes, accessories and giftable goodies we've got@dsw.com plus 30% off just about every regular price item at your DSW store. Score shoes that get you and everyone on your list the prices that get your budget. So carpe the deal, head to Designer Shoe Warehouse and get that gift list done. DSW Let us surprise you. You're listening to Squawk Pod's Thanksgiving Eve episode, which means it's time for our own holiday tradition here at cnbc. Butterball Turkey Talk Line.

Nicole Johnson (20:12)

Hi, how can I help you today?

Cameron Costa (20:14)

Here's Becky Quick.

Becky Quick (20:15)

It is that time of the year again. The Butterball Turkey Talk line is live to answer your holiday hosting questions. And joining us right now is Nicole Johnson. She is director of the Butterball Turkey Talk line. Busy, busy, busy day of the year for you. Nicole. How are things shaping up so far?

Nicole Johnson (20:31)

Hi Becky. Good morning. Thanks for having us. We are expecting a lot of calls this year. You can reach us via email, chat, text, social media. The line is not quite open. We opened this morning at 7am Central and we're taking all of your phone calls through 9 this evening. And of course, we're open on Thanksgiving Day, 6am to 6pm Central.

Becky Quick (20:56)

Some things can't wait until Thanksgiving morning. If there's a tip you'd tell everybody right now, what would it be? Make sure your turkey's defrosted for starters.

Nicole Johnson (21:05)

Yes. Number one question over 44 years that the talk line has been open is how do I thaw my turkey? If you haven't used the refrigeration method, have no fear, you can still use the cold water bath method. Leave the wrapper on, put it in the sink. It's a half hour per pound using that method.

Becky Quick (21:24)

A half hour per pound. So if you start it now, I mean, what's the average bird size for Butterball?

Nicole Johnson (21:31)

Well, I have four little butterballs at home myself and we tend to purchase a turkey that's a pound and a half to two pounds per person. We love the leftovers. You can hop on the butterball.com website. There's a lot of fun ways to incorporate the leftovers. Another common question we get is how long can I keep the leftovers for? You can put your leftovers in a Ziploc bag or container in the refrigerator for up to three days. For longer storage, you can put your leftovers in the freezer for up to three months.

Becky Quick (22:03)

Three days. Okay. So you better eat all your leftovers quickly. What's the best way to prepare the turkey? We've talked in years past about not stuffing the stuffing into the cavity. That can lead to, I guess, salmonella poisoning at some point. I'm guessing you're going to tell people, no stuffing the turkey. But I see we've got butter and a lot of other stuff. Stuff in front of you. What would you do to base that bird?

Nicole Johnson (22:27)

Well, let me address Becky, if I can, the stuffing suggesting first, when we're asked if you can stuff your turkey, it's really a personal preference. My mom, our family tradition was always to stuff the turkey absolutely safe and acceptable to do that. From a food safety perspective, you do want to make sure that you do not stuff the turkey the night before or all of your wet and dry ingredients would be combined the day of, and you stuff that turkey right before you put it in your oven.

Becky Quick (22:56)

I've had butterball turkey experts tell us in the past, and this is going back a lot of years, that you don't want to pack it in really tight. If you do stuff it inside, you got to make sure that it's not too tightly packed or it may not cook through.

Nicole Johnson (23:09)

Yes, that is a good recommendation. It's usually 3 quarter cup, maybe even 1 cup of turkey per pound of turkey. I've been on the talk line for over 20 years, and I do get that phone call quite often to stuff or not to stuff. But really the key, Becky, regardless, if you stuff your turkey or not, you do want to make sure your turkey is done with your best friend on Thanksgiving Day. And that's your meat thermometer. It's going to register 170 in the breast and thigh for best eating quality. And if you stuff your turkey in the center of the stuffing, that thermometer goes and it's going to register 165 for best eating quality.

Becky Quick (23:48)

Nicole, we, we have had a lot of talk about inflation and prices. Food prices obviously have gone higher, but I think turkey prices have come down. Is that the case?

Nicole Johnson (24:00)

Well, I'm probably not the best person to talk to you about pricing. What I can tell you is turkey is certainly one of the most economical part of your Thanksgiving meals. Of course, we always suggest a pound and a half to two pounds per turkey for those great leftover recipes.

Becky Quick (24:18)

You wearing Butterball pants today? I hear there are new pants that are out that are supposed to be designed for all points of making the bird.

Nicole Johnson (24:27)

I am not wearing them today. I wish I was. We wore them the first couple weeks of Thanksgiving. I work tomorrow, as you can imagine. But when I go home and celebrate with my own four little butterballs, I will be wearing those Hadley and Bennett Thanksgiving hosting pants. They were a lot of fun this year.

Becky Quick (24:46)

Really hoping you've got a pocket for the meat thermometer, the phone pocket emblazoned with the Butterball hotline number, a towel loop, extra utensil loops. I think the most important thing it should have is a stretchy waistband for after you eat that meal.

Nicole Johnson (25:02)

They were very comfortable. Really. We're hoping just to give hosts a leg up this year because Thanksgiving hosting can be really stressful. So those hosting pants we're hoping gave our cook some confidence.

Becky Quick (25:13)

Okay, Nicole, thank you. I know you guys have a busy couple of days ahead of you. Good luck. Happy Thanksgiving.

Nicole Johnson (25:17)

Thank you. Thank you, Becky. Happy Thanksgiving.

Cameron Costa (25:22)

That's the podcast for today. Thank you for tuning in this holiday. As always, we're grateful to you, our listeners, for sticking with us and for giving us feedback all these years. We're also grateful to the the team that brings this to life every day. This pod is produced by me, Cameron Costa, Katie Kramer and Zach Valise. And our editors John Lazration and Rafael Gonzalez make audio magic every day. And of course we couldn't do any of it without squawkbox. Hosts on CNBC's air every weekday morning. Joe Kernan, Becky Quick and Andrew Ross Sorkin. We're dark tomorrow so happy Thanksgiving. We'll catch you right back here on Black Friday.

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