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Biden: Trump's Refusal to Concede is an 'Embarrassment'; Trump in Hiding after Election Defeat; U.S. Smashes Records for New COVID-19 Cases, Hospitalizations; Trump Replaces Senior Pentagon Officials with Loyalists. Aired 6-6:30a ET
Aired November 11, 2020 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Donald Trump blocking key plans for the transition of power after losing the election.
[05:59:18]
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: I just think it's an embarrassment.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Biden is continuing with the transition.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How do you expect to work with Republicans if they won't even acknowledge you as president-elect?
BIDEN: They will.
NICK WATT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: While the virus runs rampant across the country, some very promising news out of the lab.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Help is coming, and it's coming soon.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Just because a vaccine is on the way, that doesn't mean Americans can relax when it comes to masks and social distancing. With coronavirus infections rising in 44 states.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANNOUNCER: This is NEW DAY with Alisyn Camerota and John Berman.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY. It is Wednesday, November 11, 6 a.m. here in New York on this Veterans Day.
We begin with President-elect Joe Biden trying to reassure the American people that President Trump's refusal to concede will not impede the transition.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Well, I just think it's an embarrassment, quite frankly. The only thing that -- how can I say this tactfully -- I think it will not help the president's legacy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CAMEROTA: The president-elect says he is already speaking with world leaders, even as Republican leaders try to peddle claims of voter fraud that are being debunked in real time by state officials around the country.
But the outgoing president's actions are causing alarm at the Pentagon, after several senior officials were removed and replaced with Trump loyalists. One defense officials calls it, quote, "scary and unsettling," saying it amounts to, quote, "dictator moves."
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: So if so, then Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is reading from the same dictator playbook. The thin-skinned secretary, who once demanded a reporter point to Ukraine on a map, this morning might be searching for his integrity on that map, after he publicly denied the outcome of the election.
Also this morning, where's the president actually been? If he's so certain about the outcome of the election, why hasn't he come out and said it in person? Is it embarrassment that has kept him from showing his face since last Thursday? Lack of conviction?
We're told that today he will attend a Veterans Day event. Unclear whether he will muster the energy later in the day to answer questions.
He could also address the staggering new numbers in the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. reporting a record number of new cases and a record number of people hospitalized: nearly 62,000. And when you look at this curve, really, there's no sign of it slowing down. It is terrifying to think where this is headed.
And how is the vice president, Mike Pence, the head of the coronavirus task force, responding? He's going on vacation.
So let's begin our coverage with CNN's M.J. Lee, live in Wilmington, Delaware, covering the president-elect, Joe Biden. What do we expect to hear from them today, M.J.?
M.J. LEE, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, John.
Well, this race was called on Saturday. It is now Wednesday morning. So incredible that the president still has not conceded this race.
But here in Wilmington, Delaware, we are seeing President-elect Biden move on with his transition efforts. Already this week, we saw him announce a COVID advisory board.
Yesterday, he held a press conference and talked about the future of the Affordable Care Act. Today, we know that he is going to have meetings with his transition advisers.
And yesterday, we really did see him try to project this sense of calm. And CNN is told that that does come from his advisers, as well. But importantly, when he was asked about the president refusing to
concede, he had some very sharp words, and he also ventured this guess as to why some Republicans around the president are also participating in this nonsense.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: I think that the whole Republican Party has been put in a position, with a few notable exceptions, of being mildly intimidated by the sitting president.
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LEE: Something else that Biden has been doing this week is speaking to world leaders -- world leaders from Germany, the U.K., France -- accepting their congratulations.
And I should note, even though he is trying to project this sense of calm, all of this is having real ramifications. For example, he can't access transition funding. He also can't receive the presidential daily briefings, which are classified.
Biden was asked about both of these things yesterday, and he essentially said, Look, they would be nice to have access to, but for now, they are unnecessary, because only one person is president at any given time. He also said that, for the time being, he doesn't think taking any legal action is necessary. We'll see if that changes in the coming weeks -- John.
BERMAN: All right, M.J., thank you very much.
It really is notable how the president-elect has chosen to behave, how he chose to address this yesterday. Because there is genuine concern, even alarm among a lot of people about how the president is reacting. So his behavior, notable.
The other thing that's notable, and I just don't think we can -- we can push this aside, where's the president been? It's been since Thursday that we've seen his face. So he's in some sort of hiding and --
CAMEROTA: Or plotting.
BERMAN: Well, no --
CAMEROTA: The other option, I mean, he's conspicuously absent, for sure, for somebody who likes being on television and has done that every day of his presidency. But is it possible this he's behind the scenes doing something other than hiding?
BERMAN: Oh, he is clearly a brilliant political strategist, planning these intricate moves.
No, I think it's fair to ask the question about whether he's so embarrassed and knows that he will face questions about losing an election or forced to justify, you know, the B.S. lawsuits here, and he doesn't have good answers for it. It really is interesting that he lacks the conviction to come out and talk about this publicly or the energy.
CAMEROTA: Well --
[06:05:18]
BERMAN: He either lacks the conviction or the energy.
CAMEROTA: He is stacking the Pentagon with his people.
BERMAN: Is he?
CAMEROTA: And firing the defense secretary.
BERMAN: How do you know it's not the chief of staff? We don't know. We haven't seen him.
So he has yet to talk about this publicly except by tweet. If he is going to do this, he should come out and talk about it publicly.
Let's go to CNN's Joe Johns, live at the White House, for an update on all this -- Joe.
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: That's right, John. The outgoing president has been missing in action, and we haven't seen him for the last several days, though he has made clear on social media that he continues to refuse to accept the results of the election and, very notably, at a time while the president-elect has been trying to stay out of the drama, apparently hoping that the president's senior administration officials, as well as Republicans up on Capitol Hill, come to their senses.
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JOHNS (voice-over): While President Trump is hiding from reality behind the White House walls and refusing to concede his defeat, President-elect Joe Biden is moving forward.
BIDEN: We don't see anything that's slowing us down, quite frankly.
JOHNS: Biden says he'll continue to work even without access to many resources that should be available to him as president-elect.
BIDEN: We are already beginning the transition. We're well underway. And the ability for the administration, in any way by failure to recognize our win, does not change the dynamic at all and what we're able to do.
JOHNS: As the Trump administration delays the transition, they are also unwilling to accept Biden's victory, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
MIKE POMPEO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: There will be a smooth transition to a second Trump administration. All right, we're ready. The world is watching what's taking place. We're going to count all the votes.
JOHNS: On Capitol Hill, many Republican lawmakers openly supporting Trump's lies.
SEN. ROY BLUNT (R-MO): The president wasn't defeated by huge numbers. In fact, he may not have been defeated at all.
JOHNS: Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell saying he's waiting to recognize Biden's win.
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): The Electoral College votes, anyone who's running for office can exhaust concerns about counting, in any court of appropriate jurisdiction. It's not unusual. It should not be alarming. At some point here, we'll find out.
JOHNS: This despite no evidence of widespread voter fraud or illegal voting in the United States. And little chance any of the Trump campaign's legal battles will change the outcome of the election.
Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker sending a rare rebuke from a Republican to the president.
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER (R-MA): I'm dismayed to hear the baseless claims coming from the president, from his team, and from many other elected Republican officials in Washington.
But this latest move to employ the Department of Justice in all of this is so wildly inappropriate.
JOHNS: Democrats calling Trump's refusal to start a peaceful transition of power, extremely dangerous.
REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): It's a real concern, any way you look at it, and we don't know what will take place in the next two months. It could be, you know, very smooth in terms of foreign policy or national security threats, or we could have a real crisis.
JOHNS: Vice President-elect Kamala Harris emphasizing there's no reason to question the results.
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE-PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Joe Biden won the election decisively with more votes than have ever been cast in American history.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JOHNS: The president has not held a public event since last Thursday's speech in the White House briefing room, in which he took no questions. But he is expected to make an appearance today at Arlington Cemetery in observance of Veterans Day -- Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: OK. We will keep an eye out for that. Thank you very much, Joe.
Also developing this morning, new coronavirus numbers that show that the pandemic is rapidly accelerating. The U.S. smashed its record for new cases with more than 136,000 overnight. Hospitalizations also reaching record numbers. More than 61,000 Americans are so sick with the virus they are in the hospital this morning.
CNN's Adrienne Broaddus is live in Chicago with more. What's happening there, Adrienne?
ADRIENNE BROADDUS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Here in Chicago and across the nation, we are seeing an increase in new cases, especially yesterday when the nation saw the most new confirmed cases throughout the entire pandemic.
Health experts are warning and reminding people to wear a mask and watch their distance in an effort to take the strain off of hospitals, which are seeing an increase, too.
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[06:10:10]
BROADDUS (voice-over): The United States hit another grim milestone in the pandemic. More than 136,000 new coronavirus cases were reported on Tuesday, marking the eighth consecutive day the U.S. has seen more than 100,000 new cases. Dr. Anthony Fauci is concerned the country is growing fatigued from the pandemic.
FAUCI: I hope that the fact that people realize that help is on the way in the form of a vaccine and soon, that that would get them to be even more motivated to do the public health measures, because when you know help is on the way, don't give up.
BROADDUS: As cases continue to spike across the country, more people are now in the hospital with the coronavirus than at any other point in the pandemic.
Texas reporting more than 12,000 new COVID cases Tuesday, one of the highest counts the state has recorded in a single day, and making it the first state to have more than 1 million confirmed cases.
In the northeast, a concerning uptick in cases in several states, including Maryland and New Jersey, the governors of both states issuing new restrictions on indoor dining.
GOV. LARRY HOGAN (R-MD): Too many businesses are failing to comply with the state regulations and orders. Sadly, as a result, the virus has returned to our state in a big way.
BROADDUS: In the Midwest, positivity test rates continue to rise, signaling rampant spread throughout the region. The surgeon general addressed the uptick of cases in South Dakota and implored residents to mask up.
DR. JEROME ADAMS, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: If we can save a life from COVID or from a heart attack or something else, simply by wearing a mask, then why not?
BROADDUS: In Nebraska, new mask and social distancing requirements are taking effect today.
And in Wisconsin, more than 7,400 new cases reported Tuesday. Governor Tony Evers issued a new executive order, advising the people of Wisconsin to stay home.
GOV. TONY EVERS (D-WI): Wisconsin, this is serious. The crisis is urgent.
BROADDUS: And here in Illinois, the state reported more than 12,000 new cases on Tuesday.
In the suburbs of Chicago, lines of cars stretches back for miles of people, waiting to be tested.
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BROADDUS: And starting Friday, Chicago will implement a new travel order. That order designates states one of three colors: red, orange or yellow. If you're traveling to Chicago from a red state, you must quarantine for 14 days or receive a negative COVID test no more than 72 hours prior to your arrival -- Alisyn.
CAMEROTA: That would be helpful. I mean, I do think that people are looking for guidelines right now of what they're supposed to be doing. So thank you very much, Adrienne.
All right, multiple defense officials warning that the Trump administration is acting like a dictatorship. We have new details from behind the scenes about how Biden's transition team is responding, next.
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WILLIAM COHEN, FORMER U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: So the way in which they're conducting themselves is more akin to a dictatorship than a democracy.
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CAMEROTA: That's former defense secretary, William Cohen, sounding the alarm after the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, refused to acknowledge President-elect Biden's victory.
There's also growing concern at the Pentagon after the Trump administration pushed out these four senior defense officials and replaced them with Trump loyalists.
Joining us now, CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr and CNN national security analyst Samantha Vinograd. She was a national security adviser under President Obama. It's great to have both of you and all of the reporting that you're going to share with us.
Barbara, what's the thinking at the Pentagon of why President Trump is doing this? BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think that's the
big question, because right now, there has been no public reason for -- given for the president to replace any of these individuals.
It's well known, they're all Trump loyalists. One of them worked with Michael Flynn at the White House in the early days in the National Security Council. Another one has promoted conspiracy theories and anti-Islamic statements.
And the new acting secretary of defense, Chris Miller, may be a very fine person, but until just a few months ago, he held a relatively junior position as a deputy assistant secretary here at the Pentagon. His career specialty has been Special Operations. Being secretary of defense, much wider portfolio than that, encompasses a lot more complex issues.
Basically, the president turning out decades of experience here at the Pentagon in the middle of a pandemic, in the middle of a transition, and there is just a lot of concern about what the president is doing, why he's doing it, and what may come next.
BERMAN: Barbara, I'm going to stick with you. No one is better sourced at the Pentagon than you are. And I'm talking about not just now, but for decades at this point. What's the vibe inside the walls this morning? And how much could this cadre of loyalists do in the next 70 days?
STARR: Well, let's take the second one first. People -- How to say this correctly. I mean, the U.S. military and civilian officials follow legal orders of any president of the United States. There is civilian control of the military in this country. The president of the United States, if he issues a legal order, it will be followed. So take that where you will.
What is the mood? You know, I think it's important to say, the people who work in the Pentagon, of course, don't represent the entire U.S. military. Hard to say what troops overseas are thinking. They're very involved in what they're doing around the world.
[06:20:11]
But here at the Pentagon, where there's a lot of visibility into the political side of Washington, look, I mean, one official who may well be the next to go, said to me yesterday, For now, it appears the public beheadings are over. Beheadings, you don't, you know, usually hear those kinds of words.
Another official said, It's scary, it's unsettling, and it feels like these are dictator moves.
We've heard that before now from former Secretary William Cohen. Not words you hear describing the mood at the Pentagon.
CAMEROTA: So, Sam, publicly, President-elect Biden is projecting calm. He is saying to the American people, We'll get past all this obstruction. Don't worry. Behind the scenes, what are they saying?
SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, Alisyn, it is worth noting that I think the American public should be reassured by the president-elect's comments. Remember, this is not Biden's first rodeo. He's done a transition before. He's surrounded himself with people with deep government experience, and they've really hit the ground running.
But that said, based on my conversations with members of his team, the team is firmly focused on the work at hand, public policy agendas, getting personnel lists together and that sort of thing.
But there's certainly a recognition, if not a concern, that the continued delay in the transition process could harm the incoming administration's ability to govern from a fully informed and fully staffed position on day one. The longer this drags on, the more harm that could be done to our national security going forward. And frankly, any American with any ounce of patriotism should be concerned about this delay in the transition process.
BERMAN: You know who else is concerned about that? People who have been there before in just this circumstance. Andy Card, who was George W. Bush's chief of staff; John Podesta, chief of staff to Bill Clinton, they wrote a joint op-ed, a Republican and a Democrat, overnight in "The Washington Post." I want to read you part of what they said.
"With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to wreak havoc, the costs of a delay are much higher today than almost any time in U.S. history. A delayed transition and the absence of cooperation between the outgoing and incoming administrations could hinder economic recovery, slow the distribution of a vaccine, and God forbid, put American lives at risk." It goes on there, Sam.
To Alisyn's question, you know, the president-elect is portraying confidence. And I actually don't question that he has confidence that it will all work out in the end.
But what's the level of anxiety behind the scenes, not just about whether or not this will hinder the transition and the ability to do the job, but the overall political atmosphere in the country in Biden world? You're well-sourced in this world. What are they saying in Wilmington?
VINOGRAD: Well, the specific focus right now, again, is trying to get the work at hand done. But there is certainly a view that the longer that this drags on, this becomes a partisan issue. And this pits members of the Republican Party against the administration-elect. This should not be a bipartisan sticking point, John.
Remember, the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 and subsequent legislation was passed, because there was a bipartisan consensus that there needed to be an orderly transfer of power.
And many of the officials in the federal government that should be working with the incoming administration are career officials. They're not only political appointees. So there is a concern that this could turn into a political football, when it should be an area of agreement between Republicans and Democrats.
BERMAN: Samantha Vinograd, Barbara Starr, thank you both so much for your insight and your reporting. Really appreciate it.
One of the key questions this morning is how long can this go on? What are Republicans waiting for? What moment will they say, OK, finally, we accept the outcome of the election? That's next.
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[06:28:24]
BIDEN: We are already beginning the transition. We're well underway. And the ability for the administration, in any way, by failure to recognize this -- our win does not change the dynamic at all and what we're able to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERMAN: How do you like that not-so-subtle message from the president- elect? He's saying that foreign leaders have called him, but members of the U.S. Senate haven't.
All right, joining us now to discuss, Anna Palmer, senior Washington correspondent for "Politico." Also with us, Natasha Alford. She is the vice president of digital content and senior correspondent at "The Grio."
Anna, I want to start with you, because I love it when you send the playbook out, LIKE, two seconds before you come on our air.
CAMEROTA: Thank you.
BERMAN: Your reporting this morning is that most Republicans on the Hill and around the country, they're engaging in what you call performance art. That there really aren't many people who believe that there's any chance of delaying or changing the outcome of the election, but they're playing along to let the president tire himself out. It's performance art, you call it.
So how long will this performance go on? And when -- what sign or what moment will they stand up and say, OK, the performance is over?
ANNA PALMER, SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT, "POLITICO": Republicans on the Hill have really had a hard time standing up to this president for the past four years. So I do think they're going to let this play out for as long as they necessarily need to.
The date that we hear is, certainly, the certification of a lot of the ballots in the state. That happens mostly -- it's state by state -- but a lot of them will happen at the end of this month or early into December.
I also think you have to really look at a political play here, with the Senate Republicans looking at those two races in Georgia. They do not want to piss off.
