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Researchers Estimate 75000+ People In Wuhan, China May Be Infected With Coronavirus; U.S. Imposes Travel Restrictions Over Coronavirus; Senate Poised To Acquit Trump After Vote For Witnesses Fails. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired February 01, 2020 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[12:00:00]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello everyone. Thank you so much for joining me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. We begin with breaking news and new information warning that the number of coronavirus cases maybe many times higher than what is currently being reported.

Researchers at the University of Hong Kong are estimating there could be more than 75,000 people infected in Wuhan, China with the number of cases doubling every week.

A figure substantially higher than what the Chinese government is reporting. Right now according to Chinese authorities, there are nearly 12000 cases and 259 deaths and drones are flying street to street warning residents to stay inside and they're also scolding people for not wearing masks.

CNN's David Culver has more from Beijing.

DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fred, as China steps up its massive containment effort, we're learning that more and more countries are restricting their residents from traveling here to mainland China.

Meantime, here in China, we're also getting a better idea as to how this crisis is being portrayed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CULVER: These are the images Chinese state media CCTV broadcast across the country.

Rapid construction of not one but two hospitals slated to open next week with capacity for 2600 patients. Scenes of the nation mobilizing in its fight against the deadly coronavirus. On the flagship evening newscast to host praising the ruling Communist Party for the massive containment efforts that's under way.

Rotating articles Friday, on state run news agency Xinhua website reassure readers of the efforts to keep supplies flowing. One headline reading China has full confidence, capability to control the epidemic.

But the people in Wuhan portray a desperate reality to CNN, describing life threatening shortages of medical supplies. DORA JIANG, NIECE OF CORONAVIRUS PATIENT: It's really difficult you

know like and it's really emotional stories for me.

CULVER: Dora Jiang video chatted with us from Germany. She says it took 4 days for her 72 year old uncle in Wuhan to get his test results. They came back positive.

JIANG: I don't think it's because they really want to control the numbers but I think it's more about the capacity.

CULVER: Before the official state news outlets began to report the dangers of the virus, people in China turned to social media for the truth. This lawyer turned citizen journalists in Wuhan has been posting the problems, he's encountered saying it's lack of facemask, hazmat suits, gears and the most important thing is lack of testing kits.

You can't get confirmation if there's no testing kits. The only thing you can do to be a suspect case and wait at home. A stark contrast would have a ruling communist party's official newspaper, The People's Daily cover the outbreak.

Their front page story on January 24. A lunar New Year speech made by President Xi in which he made no mention of Wuhan's lockdown that was ordered hours earlier. On national television this week, XI did try to reassure people that he is personally directing the effort and releasing information in a "transparent and responsible manner."

But some Chinese media outlets known for a more independent streak have exposed the disturbing truths of this outbreak.

The publication 'The Paper' ran this video showing one suspected patient who apparently had no choice but to quarantine himself in his own car. These images posted on the people's daily Vevo account shows medical personnel in a Wuhan hospital making mask and hazmat suits out of trash bags.

Similarly, disturbing images shared across Chinese social media, fueling concern that the actual number of people infected is greater than the official count, that conditions for medical staff are increasingly dire and that this outbreak is far from under control.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CULVER: We're also learning about more extreme containment efforts that are under way here in China particularly within one city Hong Kong, which is just outside Wuhan. It's part of the lockdown zone, part of the epicenter of this outbreak and in that city officials there are implementing a policy that restricts households to only allowing one member of their family to leave every other day so as to go grocery shopping and then go back so as to reduce the exposure and potentially stop the spread of this virus.

None the less, it is extreme. Fred.

WHITFIELD: David Culver, thank you so much. Dozens of countries around the world are reporting now confirmed cases of the virus including seven in the U.S. where the Health and Human Services Secretary has declared a public health emergency. CNN's Natasha Chen is at Hartsfield Jackson airport in Atlanta.

Natasha, the U.S. is imposing travel and quarantine restrictions that haven't been used in 50 years. So what exactly is about to go into place?

NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so the restrictions you're talking about Fred, most of them start tomorrow at 5:00 PM eastern time. So 5 P. M. eastern on Sunday, the White House and CDC has said that non-citizens - non-U.S. citizens who have been in mainland China over the last two weeks will be temporarily banned from entering the United States.

[12:05:00]

U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents and their immediate family, if they have been near the epicenter of the outbreak in Hubei province over the last two weeks, they will have to go through a 14-day mandatory quarantine upon arrival.

Now if Americans have been in any part of the rest of mainland China over the last two weeks, they will also say screening and self- monitoring but officials do say that the risk of infections for Americans is still pretty low.

At the same time because the state department has an advisory for U.S. citizens not to travel to China, a lot of airlines are looking at that and also looking at the low demand right now for travelers to and from China.

So Delta, American, United, they have temporarily suspended their flights to China. Delta specifically was going to start that suspension on February 6 and now they're moving that up to tomorrow to begin that suspension tomorrow. Fred.

WHITFIELD: And then Natasha, what can you tell us about these allegations of discrimination against Asians surrounding this coronavirus which is emerging?

CHEN: Yes, we - well Fred, we definitely heard about incidents outside the U. S. and now some isolated incidents within the U.S.

CNN spoke to for example, a teaching assistant at UC Riverside in California. She is Chinese and she got messages from students asking her to wear a mask during office hours and she has not been back to China in several years. She seemed to be a good sport about it and said, of course and she's glad to see people being so concerned about not spreading germs.

But in just a similar incidents like that if people questioning people of Asian descent to see you know, if they need to be wearing masks or questioning people who seem to be wearing masks. So things like that and some of the campuses that we've seen have posted notices to remind people that this is not acceptable to target Asian students or international students in general because of this virus. Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Natasha Chen, thank you so much. So the rising number of confirmed coronavirus cases is fueling concerns about how to keep the outbreak from turning into a full blown pandemic. Joining me right now, Dr. Syra Madad, Senior Director of the Special Pathogens Program at New York City Health and Hospitals.

Good to see you Dr. Madad. So you know, we're hearing there may be many more people infected in Wuhan, China than officially reported. So is this outbreak spreading at a faster rate than you or others might have expected?

DR. SYRA MADAD, SENIOR DIRECTOR OF THE SPECIAL PATHOGENS PROGRAM AT NYC HEALTH AND HOSPITALS: Yes, certainly spreading very, very fast. I think just within the past 24-72 hours, the numbers just keep doubling which is very concerning. This outbreak is still very early on and it's introductory so it's still too early to tell whether this is a mild disease versus a severe disease.

We're still waiting for more data to come out to be able to see the transmissibility and the severity and a number of other epidemiological factors that can see what we're actually you know, experiencing here.

WHITFIELD: And there are real concerns with this real life situation right now but by the way, you also happen to be featured in the Netflix Docuseries 'Pandemic' and in one scene document, Dr. Madad, you and your staff conduct a simulated response to an outbreak of a novel virus, a fairly new version of the virus similar to the coronavirus and a member of the medical staff faces a choice of changing her contaminated clothing or helping another patient.

And she talks about the dilemma. Let's watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MADAD: If I had to take the time out to switch my gown and someone needs to be intubated, I'm going to pick their life over switching out my garment.

We're talking about a severe respiratory disease, really big lesson, you know, we've mentioned this over and over again is that health care workers were disproportionately affected in MERS and SARS and it shows us you know what we need to improve on so if you're not protected, if you can't protect yourself then how you can help others?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So what are some of the actions do you think the medical community and the U.S. government need to be taking right now?

MADAD: So from a hospital preparedness standpoint, the number one thing is preventing the spread of this disease. So at the hospital setting, we have a number of different controls in place. Administrative controls, engineering controls, personal protective equipment, engineering and environmental control. So we have protocols and processes to ensure as patients walk in

through any one of our facilities, we are able to rapidly identify these patients, isolate them, take their proper infection control measures and notify public health authorities right away.

WHITFIELD: Now I'm wondering how concerned you are when we hear these reports that the numbers might be much higher than what China is reporting. Why do you believe that is?

MADAD: Well, the data is still coming and we're not exactly sure what we're seeing from a global standpoint but from a domestic standpoint we've only had seven cases here in the United States.

[12:10:00]

And locally here with the New York state, New York City, there hasn't been any confirmed cases. We are planning very aggressively to ensure that if cases do come about here, whether in New York or other states, that we have the appropriate response plans in place including search plans that we know we can look to, to increase our support.

WHITFIELD: And while there's a lot of fear over this coronavirus you know, the flu is already widespread in the U.S. and it really is much more deadly, is it not? I mean the CDC is estimating that so far this season there have been at least 19 million cases of the flu in the U.S.

180,000 hospitalizations and 10,000 deaths. Do you see that the coronavirus should be as alarming as the flu is right now in the U.S. to people?

MADAD: We should put this into context. Seasonal flu is something that we are much more concerned about. It is widespread, it's peak flu season right now. Novel coronavirus, obviously very concerning both at the domestic and international scale. But for Americans we are more you know prone to obviously getting seasonal flu than novel coronavirus so certainly do get your flu shot and take the same basic measures as you would for any respiratory disease.

Wash your hands. If you're sick stay home or see a health care provider.

WHITFIELD: Dr. Syra Madad, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it.

MADAD: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: All right, still ahead President Trump is just days away from being acquitted but the President doesn't appear to be in a celebratory mood.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:15:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. A clash on Capitol Hill setting up

what will be another consequential weak in President Trump's impeachment trial. The state of play taking a dramatic shift on Friday as senators voted against a Democratic effort to subpoena witnesses and documents.

That 49 to 51 vote sets up a huge week ahead. On Monday House Impeachment managers and President Trump's legal teams begin their closing arguments. Those arguments taking place as Iowa holds its caucuses which could help determine who President Trump's Democratic challenger will be in 2020.

Then on Tuesday, senators return to the floor to begin their final speeches in the impeachment trial, explaining the rationale for their votes. That will all happen just hours ahead of President Trump's State of the Union address in the House chamber.

And then on Wednesday, more Senate impeachment speeches before a final vote to either acquit or convict President Trump on the two articles, obstruction of Congress and abuse of power. That is set for 4:00 in the afternoon. Again, all of this happening without any witnesses testifying before the Senate.

Minority leader Chuck Schumer had strong words following the Senate's vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): It's a grand tragedy. One of the worst tragedies that the Senate has ever overcome. America will remember this day unfortunately where the Senate did not live up to its responsibilities, where the Senate turned away from truth and went along with a sham trial.

This - if the President is equated with no witnesses, no documents, the acquittal will have no value.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: CNN's Lauren Fox is on Capitol Hill so Lauren is President Trump's acquittal all but a certainty?

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: I think that that's exactly how Republicans are looking at it. Look, the White House would like this to come to a close last night but there just weren't the votes essentially to stop Democrats from offering more and more motions and amendments to delay this process.

So essentially what had to happen was McConnell and Schumer had to come to some kind of an agreement to lay out the groundwork for how this all was going to come to a close up but look, here's what some key Republican allies to the President had to say last night about the closing of this impeachment trial.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): For all intents and purposes, this impeachment

process is over. The vote we had today not to extend the trial, not to have yet more additional witnesses. We already had 18 witnesses testify in the House. We've seen thousands of pages of documents that the House managers and the White House defense lawyers have focused on.

And throughout all of it, the House managers never proved their case and - and so their strategy as you know it was just a Hail Mary. If they haven't proven their case, their only hope was bring additional witnesses, drag it out weeks or months and go on a fishing expedition.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): You know what I believe about all this? It was a bunch of partisan (BLEEP) in the House. It continued in the Senate. It's going to end Wednesday. The President's going to get acquitted. It's going to blow up in their face.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOX: One thing to keep in mind of course, Fredericka, is the fact that Republicans and Democrats, both wanted to have an opportunity to give statements on the floor next week about why they were choosing to either vote to remove the President from office or to vote against it.

So Monday and Tuesday, give that opportunity to senators and of course this also gives an opportunity for the House managers and the President's counsel to make their closing arguments on Monday. That consequential vote of course to acquit President Trump is expected Wednesday afternoon. Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right, Lauren Fox, thank you so much on Capitol Hill. All right, so pretty big week ahead for the President. He's spending this weekend at his Mar-a-Lago resort. CNN's Kristen Holmes is live for us in West Palm Beach.

So Kristen, you know how has the President taken the news that his trial will stretch into the next week and with some finality after his State of the Union address?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred, if you look at his Twitter feed, you would think he's taking it pretty well. I want to show you what he just tweeted just a few minutes ago. It was a picture of him golfing with the caption, "Getting a little exercise this morning."

[12:20:00]

This was shortly after we learned he arrived at his Trump International Golf Club down here in West Palm Beach. But despite this photo, we heard from sources last night who were at Mar-a-Lago, who interacted with the President, who said that he was much more subdued and quiet than normal.

That there had been chatter among members and guests before he arrived. That they believed he was going to be in a celebratory mood. They were talking about what they call was good news. The Senate of course, blocking any entrance of new evidence or witnesses into the impeachment trial.

So they were waiting for a kind of jovial President and instead they got a much quieter President and a source who overheard President talking to multiple groups said that he never even mentioned impeachment or the day's events.

Now of course, that is very different than what we saw on Twitter as he has been going on and on about the impeachment hoax, slamming Democrats for the past several days but again, arriving at Mar-a-Lago last night after all of this news and having a more subdued demeanor than normal.

WHITFIELD: All right, Kristen Holmes, thank you so much. We'll check back with you. All right, let's talk further. With me now is CNN Legal Analyst, Michael Zeldin. He's a former federal prosecutor. Also joining me as A.B. Stoddard. She is an Associate Editor and Columnist for Real Clear Politics. Good to see both of you.

All right, Michael, you first. The GOP you know, has voted to not allow witnesses and appears poised to acquit the President and now some Republican senators are explaining their decisions.

Florida senator Marco Rubio is releasing a statement saying in part here, "just because actions meet the standard of impeachment does not mean it is in the best interest of the country to remove a President from office."

So what kind of precedent could or is being set in your view, Michael? But there are senators saying OK, there are some inappropriate behaviors on display here but not enough to remove him from office.

MICHAEL ZELDIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: So you can parse it in two ways. One is the group of senators who say, I see this conduct as improper but it does not rise to level of high crimes and misdemeanors. So did the Clinton defense.

Then there are Marco Rubio types who are saying this - seems to be saying this meets the level of an impeachable offense but I don't think it's in the best interest of the country to remove him. Of course the constitution seems to require that if you reach that level of committing an impeachable offense, then you get impeached and you get removed.

So I'm not sure what Rubio is saying here. I think though that the consensus that is evolving from some of these Republicans is that the President cannot be depended as having had a perfect vocal, that what he did was inappropriate and more evidence is coming out each day.

There was a revelation last night midnight, that the OMB, Office of Management and Budget has additional emails that seem to indicate that the President was directly involved with holding military aid and so there's a lot of stuff that's going to come out after this impeachment acquittal that's going to be embarrassing to the Senate and it's going to be problematic for the President as he runs for re-election.

WHITFIELD: And Michael, do you think it really just put the job description of being a member of the senate you know, on the line.

ZELDIN: Sure. I think that the Senate was chosen by the framers of the constitution to be the deliberative body for these trials because at the time, they weren't even elected by the people directly. They were appointed by state legislators. They were supposed to be above the partisan fray.

Well, they're well below the partisan fray right now and they have failed in their oath of office to do impartial justice so I think it's really as Schumer said, a black mark against the Senate that will take a long time to overcome.

WHITFIELD: And then AB, some of the political repercussions you know, are already starting. Matt Schlapp, the Chairman and this of CPAC announced on Twitter that Mitt Romney who voted for witnesses will not be invited to that conservative gathering.

You know Romney is not up for re-election, November but several other moderate Republican senators could face a tough re-election this year. In fact you know there's some polling here showing that around 75 percent of the American public wanted witnesses.

So could this political calculation, I guess showing more allegiance you know to party rather than you know the duty of whatever the constitution is saying to many of these senators, might they - might this backfire for many of them?

A.B. STODDARD, ASSOCIATE EDITOR AND COLUMNIST, REAL CLEAR POLITICS: I think it's a huge political risks that they're taking, not in a vote on Wednesday at 4:00 to acquit the President and say things like this just - we've never moved to President. It doesn't my - you know, it doesn't rise to the level of removal.

But to vote against witnesses and evidence and documents is really an indefensible position. Given that, we know what John Bolton is begging to tell the Senate under oath in testimony and what we know is going to come out in the weeks and months to come before election day.

So the Republican senators in states where they have tough races have really exposed themselves to the idea that they knowingly supported what is going to be churned by the Democrats, a sham trial and a cover up without witnesses.

[12:25:00]

75 percent of the country wanted them. Even if you were only casually paying attention or paid no attention to the happenings of the last two weeks, when you're told months from now that Senator Tillis or Senator Ernst or Senator McSally and on and on supported a trial without witnesses, knowing that these revelations would eventually come out and they will be damning and they refused to listen to the National Security Adviser of the President, it's a really strong mistake.

I would add that someone like Thom Tillis of North Carolina knows that President Trump can easily win his state while he loses his Senate race. These senators need to win a majority in their state outside of the Trump base. Trump is likely to win electoral college victory on his base alone.

This is a different calculation for them.

WHITFIELD: Yes and it all seems as though you know, it means that - you know, many Republicans said they know that there's going to be some backlash but they'd much rather get the backlash from the voting public when you look at the 75 percent you know who wanted witnesses versus the backlash that would come from the President.

And that may have led them largely in how and why they voted.

STODDARD: There's no question. I think they've been pretty open about their fear of the President, making sure that they know that we know that they are consulting with him throughout the entire trial.

That he signed off on the acquittal plan last night. They've been very transparent about that fear.

WHITFIELD: Yes and so Michael, really quickly. It would be the Majority Leader, right? Mitch McConnell who would have that the power of any kind of censure? Do you see that he might entertain that since there are so many you know, Republicans who are saying OK, the President worked - you know, he was - his actions were inappropriate?

Will there be the option of any kind of censure, slap on the wrist for the President or no?

ZELDIN: So I think that the Senate has the authority to file a motion of censure. It should be a bipartisan one. If you have the Rubios and the Lamar Alexanders of the world saying this was inappropriate behavior but because of partisan politics, he gets to be acquitted, I think that there should be some mark on his permanent record that says this was not acceptable behavior.

We are going to censure you in a bipartisan way. Do I think that that's likely? No. Do I think that's appropriate? Absolutely.

WHITFIELD: All right Michael Zeldin, A.B. Stoddard, good to see you both. Thank you so much. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:32:00]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: The Iowa caucuses, Monday, and 2020 Democrats are making a final big push for support in that key state. And if polls are any indication right now, it's anybody's race.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny has been in Iowa talking to go voters, and has an inside look into how the caucuses will work.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Finally, it's their turn. Iowa voters are poised to render their first verdict of the presidential race.

PAT MUNDY, IOWA VOTER: I have never been not willing to take a chance. And I think this election we maybe need to take a chance.

ZELENY (voice-over): Pat Mundy has been busy sizing up the field.

MUNDY: I started first with Elizabeth Warren, and I was very pro- Elizabeth in the beginning. My next candidate was Pete, I've heard him speak twice. Joe Biden, he is a source of comfort. Bernie Sanders comes off much more compelling in person than he does on the screen.

ZELENY (on camera): So Monday night, whose corner will you be in?

MUNDY: I have committed to caucus for Pete.

ZELENY (voice-over): Mundy, a retired teacher has taken full advantage of her front row seat. Shaking hands with Biden, asking a question off Andrew Yang, and finally coming face-to-face with her top choice.

After year of listening to candidates at town hall meetings --

SEN. BERNIE SANDERS (I-VT), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We are going to win this campaign --

ZELENY (voice-over): -- and through TV ads.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Elizabeth Warren is the president this nation needs.

ZELENY (voice-over): Voters are making up their minds.

JON HEITLAND, IOWA VOTER: This is the year to play it safe and go with a proven candidate. And I think that's Joe Biden.

ZELENY (voice-over): We met Jon Heitland at a campaign stop for Buttigieg where he made his final decision to support Biden.

HEITLAND: We need to nominate the person who can beat President Trump. That's the number one issue.

ZELENY (voice-over): The signs of the season are everywhere in Iowa, from storefronts to front yards. This time, many voters have been slow to choose as they search for the strongest candidate to challenge President Trump. Their decisions are driven by issues, but above all, electability. On that front, Democrats are torn whether to choose a progressive path --

DENISE DIAZ, IOWA VOTER: I am supporting Senator Sanders.

ZELENY (on camera): Why?

DIAZ: I just love his message. I think that he has integrity.

ZELENY (voice-over): Or a more pragmatic one.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My first choice caucus I think it's going to go with Amy Klobuchar. My second is uncertain.

ZELENY (voice-over): It's that question of second choice that's critical here. Candidates must win at least 15 percent support in the first round of voting. If they don't, voters turn to their plan B.

For Hope Bossard, that's Biden. She respects him and is comfortable with him. But after seeing him up close, she wasn't electrified.

HOPE BOSSARD, IOWA VOTER: I have to weigh this out. I like a lot of the new ideas that Tom Steyer has, but I am good with Biden. If he is our guy, I couldn't support him.

ZELENY (voice-over): But not everyone is making that choice. After seeing Biden and Buttigieg on the same day, just before Christmas, Cheri Scheib faced a tough decision.

[12:35:03]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What's a guide to do?

CHERI SCHEIB, IOWA VOTER: I don't know yet. I got to think about it and sleep on it. I don't know yet.

ZELENY (voice-over): We caught up with her again this week.

(on camera) Who you're going to be with Monday night?

SCHEIB: I'm going to be with Pete. I am. Mayor Pete, you got my vote. As many times as I've seen him, I've enjoyed him every time. I appreciate everything he says. Smart guy, today really solidified my thought process on it, so I'm going with Pete.

ZELENY (voice-over): Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Jefferson, Iowa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, let's continue in Iowa now. With me now is our Brittany Shepherd, national politics reporter for Yahoo News, and CNN Political Correspondent Abby Philip. All right, good to see you both, ladies.

So, Abby, you know, after hearing from Iowa voters, you know, there seems to be almost a lack of enthusiasm, you know, to really, you know, back a Joe Biden, but at the same time you have some who said like the one woman who says, you know, I see comfort in him. What are the concerns? What are these voters weighing?

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there are a lot of voters here in Iowa who see Joe Biden as a fall back plan that they are perfectly comfortable with. You got to remember, Fred, these voters are thinking a hundred percent about who is going to be able to beat Donald Trump. And when I talk to them, a lot of people are very interested in some of these other candidates. But at the end of the day, they have not been convinced by some of them that they can definitely beat Trump.

And so, when they look at Biden, they think -- of the people that we're seeing right now, he has the better chance in their view of beating Trump. And so lot of people do fall back on a Joe Biden, even if they don't feel electrified by him.

I actually had a couple of voters using that kind of language, saying to me I want to see who really excites voters, excites crowds. And this was at a Pete Buttigieg rally, and this person said, you know, they thought it was fine, but I think some people are honestly looking for the same kind of Barack Obama magic that the state had in 2008, and they're not finding that with a lot of the candidates right now.

WHITFIELD: So excitement versus electability. I mean, that's what a lot of these voters seem to be weighing. So Brittany, this new CNN poll shows that Biden is neck in neck with Sanders nationally. He's at 27 percent, and Sanders at 24 percent.

So, is this, you know, a sign that, you know, Biden's electability, you know, argument is being weighed with, you know, how voters, how excited voters may feel about a candidate?

BRITTANY SHEPHERD, NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER, YAHOO NEWS: Well, Fred, you have to understand that here in Iowa, they feel like they've been campaigning for the last year. I know tomorrow is the super bowl but for them it's kind of like the game changing day is Monday night. And they've been dealing with Joe Biden for, you know, the last eight years under the Obama administration and before that. So they're kind of weighing their options to see who else is may be their second and their third choice, whether someone like Bernie Sanders who is dominating the top of the polls. But honestly, if you look at Amy Klobuchar, Mayor Pete, even Andrew Yang, they're all hugging that 10 to 15 percent.

And here in Iowa, getting second or third place is just as important for those mid tier people because as we heard in Jeff's package, it's all about the math on Monday. And I know we all hate talking about math but if certain candidates in small, rural precincts can't get that 15 percent, we could see a surprise, not just a Warren surprise but maybe a Klobuchar, Yang surprise, as these campaigns consider having survivor style ally ships going into Monday.

WHITFIELD: And Brittany, you know, you've also been reporting, you know, that, you know, voters on the ground have been telling you they have no idea, you know, what's going to happen, and quote, it's kind of like a nail biter. So help us understand, do people really feel like they're undecided or is it that they just don't want to share?

SHEPHERD: Frankly, what I am hearing, you know, Abby, Fred, they really don't know who their second and third choice is going to be. You would think like around like the party breaks, right, the progressive folks will stick progressive, and the moderate folks will stick moderate. But I went to an Amy Klobuchar cookout in Prole, Iowa, and those nice suburban women, they wanted all different kinds of people. Some folks wanted Amy second, some folks wanted Liz second, some folks wanted Michael Bennet second. And so, there really is no consistency. Honestly, these voters just feel pressure to get it right. Several people have been telling me over the past couple of days that they kind of feel pressure because so many people are paying attention to Iowa on Monday.

WHITFIELD: And Abby, you know, the DNC has dropped grassroots fundraising qualifications for the party's next debate which means billionaire Michael Bloomberg could make his first appearance on the stage. The Sanders campaign isn't so happy about that, now accusing the DNC of essentially paving the way for Bloomberg.

So, what was the reason for these rules changes? And is, you know, Senator Sanders making, you know, a valid point that resonates with voters?

[12:40:07]

PHILLIP: Well, you know, the DNC says that the rule changes really about adjusting to a new phase in the campaign where the best barometer of where the support is in polling numbers. But at the same time, this has clear implications for Bloomberg because he has not raised any money at all from grassroots voters. I mean, he has said I am self-funding my campaign.

It's controversial on two fronts because obviously the Bernie Sanders of the world, and you've even seen candidates like Pete Buttigieg and Warren sort of raising their concerns that this is something that allows wealthy people like Bloomberg to just jump into the race at any point. But you also have campaigns that dropped out, like Cory Booker's campaign saying, you know, if we didn't have to spend all this money at getting grassroots numbers, those, you know, hundreds of thousands of grassroots voters earlier on in the campaign, we would still be in it.

So there's some questions about diversity here, also questions about whether wealthy candidates are buying their way into this race. It's controversial, but there are also questions about whether Mike Bloomberg even wants to be on the debate stage. He has taken a completely different view of this campaign. So I think we'll see what happens as we get further down into this campaign and toward that Nevada debate.

WHITFIELD: All right, never a dull moment. Abby Phillip, Brittany Shepherd, thanks to you both of you, ladies. Appreciate it.

And, of course, don't forget, it's week of special political coverage on CNN. Monday, the Iowa caucus. Tuesday, state of the union address. Wednesday and Thursday, back-to-back presidential town halls, live from New Hampshire. Don't miss the special coverage all week long right here on CNN.

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[12:45:46]

WHITFIELD: All right. President Trump's impeachment trial is quickly coming to a close. Final arguments were scheduled for Monday with the Senate poised to acquit the president in a final vote on Wednesday. Senators will be allowed to go on record to explain their votes on the floor before the roll call.

CNN is learning that Senator Susan Collins insisted that lawmakers be able to speak publicly after voting with Democrats in a failed attempt to have witnesses. But it's not the first time the Maine Republican has broken ranks with the GOP during an impeachment trial. Here now is CNN's Rebecca Buck.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REBECCA BUCK, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER (on camera): Susan Collins of Maine is walking a political tight rope after she became one of just two Republican senators to support witnesses in the Senate impeachment trial.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ms. Collins.

SEN. SUSAN COLLINS (R-ME): Aye.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Aye.

BUCK (voice-over): This, as she faces perhaps the toughest re-election fight this year. In a statement Collins said, "I believe hearing from certain witnesses would give each side the opportunity to more fully and fairly make their case, resolve any ambiguities, and provide additional clarity. Therefore, I will vote in support of the motion to allow witnesses and documents to be subpoenaed."

The decision comes as Collins is facing a challenging re-election fight in a state where Hillary Clinton beat President Trump in 2016 picking up three of Maine's four electoral votes. But this is familiar territory for Collins, not just the tough race but a tough vote in an impeachment trial. In 1999, she voted to acquit President Clinton in another decision that invited political backlash from within her own party.

More recently though, Collins has stuck with President Trump on other high stakes votes, notably in support of Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the Supreme Court. This time however, Collins is taking a different tact than other Republicans including those running in competitive races this year like Senator Cory Gardner of Colorado. Gardner said he would oppose any witnesses telling colleagues that prolonging impeachment trial could be problematic for his and other senators' campaigns. Most Republicans agreed with Gardner and now the trial is set to wrap up in the coming days without witnesses.

Rebecca Buck, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Still ahead, we're just one day away from super bowl LIV in Miami. It's the Chiefs versus the 49ers. We are live from the Super Bowl, next.

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[12:52:52]

WHITFIELD: All right, one of the biggest games of the year, well, it's almost here, the San Francisco 49ers and Kansas City Chiefs, set to square off in Super Bowl LIV tomorrow. And fans are already enjoying pre-game celebrations in Miami today, despite some pretty severe weather concerns that forced a concert venue to be evacuated last night. The storms are expected to pass.

Before kickoff, however, CNN's Andy Scholes joins me now from the red carpet, I remember doing that race last year when the Super Bowl was in Atlanta. My kids had so much fun. Anyway, let's talk about that star-studded event this weekend and everyone descending upon Miami. This is going to be really exciting.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: It is, Fred. You know, the excitement continues to build for Super Bowl LIV. Fans continue to arrive here to South Beach. You know, the Chiefs haven't been in this game in 50 years. The 49ers haven't won a Super Bowl in 25 years. So the excitement is definitely building for this game.

It's one of the most anticipated Super Bowls in a long time. The ticket prices are reflecting that. According to TicketIQ, this is the highest average ticket in Super Bowl history right now. You go to StubHub.com, the cheapest ticket in the upper deck going to cost you more than $7,000 just to get into this game between the Chiefs and the 49ers on Sunday.

Now, big part of Super Bowl week is always, of course, all the parties around town. And one of the most exclusive events of the week taking place right now, the Fanatics party. And I'm joined by the executive chairman of Fanatics Michael Rubin.

You know, Super Bows is always a fun week, great week for the entire league and fans. What makes it so special here in South Beach?

MICHAEL RUBIN, FANATICS EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN: I mean, Miami is just a place everyone loves to come and have a great time. And to be honesty, our party has become the party of weekend but having it in Miami makes it that much more fun. It's Super Bowl week in Miami, the rain is not stopping, everyone is ready to come out, just have an amazing time.

SCHOLES: All right, I got to ask you, 49ers, Chiefs, almost a toss-up according to the odds makers. Who you got?

RUBIN: I got the 49ers, 31-28, and an incredible game.

SCHOLES: Awesome. Well, I'm hoping that's really -- that'll be the case, an awesome. Michael, thank you so much for joining us.

RUBIN: Great having you here.

SCHOLES: All right. Thank you. And be sure to tune in to CNN 2:30 Eastern, the CNN Bleacher Report special kickoff in Miami, myself along with Coy Wire going to get you ready for the big game, joined by the greats Drew Brees, Rob Gronkowski, Jerry Rice, (INAUDIBLE), getting you ready for the Super Bowl.

Fredricka?

[12:55:08]

WHITFIELD: Action packed. Oh, I look forward to the special. That's fantastic. And, of course, can't wait for the game, too. It's also exciting.

Andy Scholes, good to see you. Thank you so much.

SCHOLES: All right.

WHITFIELD: All right, we are also learning during the Super Bowl there will be a tribute to Kobe Bryant and all those plans are still in the works. The LA Lakers honored Bryant last night before hitting the court for the team's first game since his tragic death a week ago. The Lakers holding a 24.2 second moment of silence before tipoff for Bryant, his daughter, and the seven others who died in Sunday's helicopter crash. A pair of court side seats covered with roses, and then left empty, decorated with Kobe and Gianna's jerseys.

The emotional ceremony included performances by Usher and Boyz II Men which drew tears from Lakers star LeBron James.

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