Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

More Coronavirus Deaths Reported in the U.S. Yesterday Than Ever Before; Biden Faces Increasing Pressure to Diversify His Cabinet; Democratic Leaders Back Bipartisan $908 Billion Stimulus Plan. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired December 03, 2020 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: The United States just set a record for coronavirus deaths reported in one day. More deaths reported here in one day, 3,157 than Japan has registered the entire pandemic. And I keep repeating this because it's outrageous and infuriating.

And while it's happening, the president, what is he doing? He's trying to overturn the election in public, literally trying to undermine democracy. Joining us now, CNN political correspondent, Abby Phillip, also with us, Natasha Alford; vice president of digital content and senior correspondent for "TheGrio".

And Abby, it's not just the president who in this, just completely deranged and detached from reality 45-minute string of lies that he posted on Facebook. The president is doing it, as Allison just pointed out, his lawyers are saying these just outrageous things in Georgia.

And then there's Michael Flynn; national security adviser, former, that he just pardoned is out there publicizing this claim and this desire and this push for martial law. Michael Flynn is putting this out on Twitter, calling for martial law, so there can be a revote here. It's just unbelievable that we're seeing this from the president of the United States. Your view?

ABBY PHILLIP, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Unbelievable, unhinged. I mean, all of this is really an embarrassment to the president and it makes you wonder why he doesn't have more people around him who are at least attempting to protect him from this kind of thing.

Who sat around at the White House and said, yes, Mr. President, 46 minutes in the White House, you know, in your official -- your official offices about this kind of nonsense with these charts that he claimed to show statistical anomalies, which I'm pretty sure people in the White House have no idea what that even is supposed to mean.

This is beyond the point at which, you know, I think it's -- you know, it's beyond any kind of reasonable action on the White House's part. And I think it's time now for people to come to the president and be clear about the fact that he has to stop doing this. If only for their own political survival. They've got to get voters out in Georgia on January 5th. And those voters are getting all kinds of crazy mixed messages from people like Sidney Powell, and that -- then the president is going to go this weekend and urge them to get out and vote. Who are they supposed to believe?

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: And by the way, Natasha, the gift you get for being an ardent President Trump supporter or friend is a super-spreader event at the White House. They're planning all sorts of Christmas parties. Your parting gift will be exposure, possibly to coronavirus as Chris Christie had from a different super-spreader event and spent time in the hospital, as Herman Cain had from a rally and died. This is what they're planning. I mean, it's beyond -- it's sick. I mean, it's sick that they're now exposing their friends in this reckless way to this.

NATASHA ALFORD, VICE PRESIDENT, DIGITAL CONTENT & SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, THEGRIO: It's a slap in the face to all Americans. I'm thinking about more than 274,000 Americans who have died. We have people who have family members who are fighting for their lives right now in the hospital.

We have Americans who made sacrifices this Thanksgiving, who didn't see family, who missed these precious moments. And from the top down, we're not getting leadership on this. So, it's completely embarrassing. But I think it also reflects that from the very beginning of this pandemic, we have been getting mixed messages and that only extended this endless year.

You know, the pain that we've gone through, because people were confused about what to do. And, you know, the fact that Mike Pompeo has any role in this -- I mean, this is the same person who joked about a second Trump term. You know, so he's just a joke when you think about the fact that he is even a part of all of this happening. And we know that the guest list, you know, reaches the hundreds. We've been told that people will social distance. We all know what happens at a party, people are going to be hugging, they're going to be kissing.

And so, yes, another super-spreader event. But you know, people are exercising their freedom of choice and putting themselves in these situations. I'm just thinking about the fact that, you know, the press secretary defends this holiday party by taking a dig at Black Lives Matter activists, you know, saying, well, if you can loot a store or burn down a building, then we can have a holiday party. Well, you know, that's a misrepresentation of the actual Black Lives Matter protesters. And they're fighting for the end of the murder of black people, not to, you know, have champagne and dip fondue.

[07:35:00]

So, two very different things, and again a total lack of leadership.

BERMAN: You know, Abby, it strikes me, there are 50-plus days left. So how concerned should people be that there are 50 days left where the president has the nuclear codes while he's literally trying to undermine democracy, overturn the election, and hold super-spreader events at the White House. You say someone needs to go talk to him. Who? Who at this point?

PHILLIP: Yes, I mean, look, I think it seems pretty clear that White House aides have taken a step back. They are not engaged in trying to convince the president one way or another. And even if they were, the president is going to listen to who he wants to listen to.

And then you have people like the Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany auditioning for her post-White House job by appearing on cable news every night to spout the same -- this kind of nonsense. It doesn't make any sense, but it seems like people within the White House are already planning for the future.

Look, I've already said that I think people really do need to be prepared for this transition to be very tumultuous. And that means because the president is going to be trying to do as much as he can in the limited amount of time that he can.

It's going to be pardons, it's going to be a lot of executive activity at the agency level. And it's going to be a lot of wild allegations from the president's own mouth and Twitter feed. So that is not going to slow down. I do think, also, that, you know, there -- we've already seen the ways in which, you know, the president is going to try to do what he can do in the last few days of his administration.

But the thing about executive actions is that once there is a new president, some of this stuff can actually be undone. So there might be a sort of limited timeline for some of these activities, even if the president tries to do some extreme things in the next 50 days.

CAMEROTA: I mean, Natasha, just thinking about what President-elect Joe Biden has to contend with, when he gets this brass ring that he's wanted his whole life of the presidency, and now he has this horrible pandemic, this economic devastation.

And trying to -- I mean, he's already signaling, undo some of the things that President Trump has done. And so, you know, where are we with that? And his cabinet picks have already gotten some criticism, I guess, some people think that it's maybe not diverse enough. It's hard to know how much stock to put in that, while all of this other deadly stuff is happening.

ALFORD: Yes, I think President-elect Joe Biden has been, you know, handed a tall order. And fortunately, he's in good company, right? President Barack Obama was also handed a terrible situation and many people think in part, that's, you know, why he -- part of why he was able to win. The moment called for his leadership at the time. And so the moment calls right now for a leader who can rise above the drama, rise above the chaos, communicate really clearly to the American people what they need to do to save lives.

Reduce harm, and you know, just generally focus on what's best for the American people. I think as we've pointed out, President Trump's actions are very self-centered. You know, the virus is raging and he's more focused on, you know, proving that the election was stolen from him. And we know that he's going down to Georgia and he's supposed to be advocating for Loeffler and Perdue. But in many ways, this is about himself.

This is about 2024, which he just, you know, at another holiday party said that he was going to come back. So, I think this says a lot about what we've had over the past four years and what we're going to see afterwards, but President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris have to keep their eyes on the prize and help the American people to move forward, even as we have this, you know, flailing president who wants all the attention on him.

BERMAN: Natasha, Abby, thank you both very much. Great to see you this morning. President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, they will join Jake Tapper for their first joint interview since their election victory. This will be interesting. Lots to talk about. Tune in for the special event tonight at 9:00 p.m. only on CNN. President Trump has long said he supports the troops, so why is he negotiating with soldier's pay? Reality check, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:00]

CAMEROTA: President Trump often claims he's a huge supporter of the military, so why is he messing with their paychecks? John Avlon is here with the reality check. Hi, John.

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Hey, Ali. So, what would be the worst way for President Trump to close out 2020 other than trying to overturn an election and presiding over the deadliest stage of a pandemic he downplayed. Well, how about playing politics with funding for our troops? Because, yes, that's happening. The man who's been basically MIA for a job he's fighting to keep after the American people fired him suddenly seems super engaged around a specific policy.

So, you know it's almost certainly about personal revenge, right? Nailed it. For nearly 60 years, the National Defense Authorization Act has with bipartisan support, it funds the U.S. military. This year, more than $740 billion for things like weapons systems and troop levels and a 3 percent increase in military pay. But Trump, who loves to brag that nobody loves the military more than me is threatening to veto the whole bill unless a provision is tacked on to kill section 230 of the Communications Act.

What's that, you ask? Well, it's an important but slightly obscure law that says that internet platforms like Twitter and Facebook can't be held legally responsible for things their users post. Key difference between platforms and publishers.

[07:45:00]

Now, there's plenty of room for debate around section 230. It's one of the few issues that Biden and Trump actually agree on, but for very different reasons. Biden wants it repealed because it's been used to excuse the spread of disinformation. Trump wants it repealed because he believes that recent efforts to crack down on that disinformation amount to censorship of conservatives. And Trump's particularly ticked off because Twitter keeps flagging his posts as disputed or misleading, because they are.

So, this debate actually tells you a lot about the differences between the two parties right now. But there really shouldn't be any debate about whether the fate of section 230 should be tied to funding the U.S. military, because they've got absolutely nothing to do with each other. That's why Republicans are actually pushing back on President Trump this time, so you know it's serious. But there's also a second issue that Trump's got with the bill.

It contains something he's been fighting tooth and nail to stop, renaming ten military bases that are named after confederate generals. Yes, the Pentagon finally decided that it's time to stop honoring soldiers who took up arms against our country to defend slavery.

But Trump wants to defend that confederate legacy. Now, beyond the dog whistle masquerading as defense of tradition, it's actually ironic because the whole move to mainstream confederate is part of post-war reconciliation came under the guise of something called the lost cause. Basically, a refusal to admit defeat.

So they created an alternate reality, telling themselves the war was about state's rights, not slavery. They said they were rebels, fighting for constitutional liberty while using intimidation tactics to deny majority rule. Which meant trying to disenfranchise black voters in the south and white supremacy reasserted through segregation for more than a century.

It's a reminder that lost causes end badly for everybody, and that includes in a different version, President Trump. It's important to admit defeat. Agree on facts and basic fairness so the nation can move forward and try to form a more perfect union, together. And that's your reality check.

CAMEROTA: Oh, yes, the alternative facts and narratives. It's interesting to know that history --

AVLON: It never ends well.

CAMEROTA: It never ends well, and how long they've been trying this. Thank you very much, John. All right, we'll get the latest jobs report in the next hour, so what will Congress do?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:50:00]

BERMAN: A tense exchange at a house hearing on coronavirus relief. California Congresswoman Katie Porter challenging Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin over his move to essentially put hundreds of millions of dollars in emergency funding out of reach from the incoming Biden administration.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KATIE PORTER (D-CA): I'm reading aloud now from section 4027 of the CARES Act. On or after January 1, 2026, any funds that are remaining shall be transferred to the general fund. In other words, sent back to the Treasury. Secretary Mnuchin, is it currently the year 2026, yes or no?

STEVE MNUCHIN, TREASURY SECRETARY OF THE UNITED STATES: Of course, it's not 2026. How ridiculous to ask me that question and waste our time.

PORTER: Well, Secretary Mnuchin, I think it's ridiculous that you're play-acting to be a lawyer. Secretary Mnuchin, are you in fact a lawyer?

MNUCHIN: I do not have a legal degree. I have lawyers that report to me.

PORTER: And you're claiming falsely in my opinion, that, that is what the law says, and you've gotten into a disagreement with someone who is actually a lawyer.

MNUCHIN: Are you a lawyer?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: She is, in fact, a lawyer. Joining me now is former acting Labor Secretary during the Obama administration, Seth Harris, he is an adviser to the Biden transition team. Secretary, thanks so much for being with us.

Look, that exchange happened yesterday, it had to do with the last Coronavirus Relief Bill. Where we are today is probably more important to where we're going forward which is discussion over a new relief bill. And before I talk about some new developments in that, I just want from you in a simple one-sentence explanation, how dire is the economic situation facing Americans this morning?

SETH HARRIS, FORMER ACTING LABOR SECRETARY UNDER OBAMA: For millions of Americans, it's desperate. We have tens of thousands of Americans waiting in food lines in order to be able to feed their families, we have 20 million Americans collecting unemployment benefits, we're going to have another million Americans identified as having filed unemployment claims last week. We have 10 million fewer jobs today than we had back in February. For many working families, the situation is desperate, Congress needs to act immediately to help those families and help the economy to recover.

BERMAN: All right. I wanted you to lay it out so people know what's happening as Congress is now perhaps further along in discussing a relief bill. This bipartisan group of senators and house members put forward a $908 billion proposal, it includes an extension of unemployment benefits, it includes aid to state and local governments, it includes pandemic emergency unemployment offers there.

What happened overnight was that Senate Minority leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi came out in support of this, and said they would support this bipartisan measure. Joe Biden, the president- elect has spoken favorably, says it's a start. How much would this make a difference? HARRIS: It would make an important difference, but as the president-

elect said, it's a start. The best deal right now is the deal that we can get, and these problem-solving members of the Senate and of the house have laid out a compromised proposal, there is something in it for everybody to like, there's something in it for everybody to hate.

That's how you get to a compromise. So we need a deal so we can get the money flowing for small businesses for unemployed workers, for food insecure workers, especially for local and state governments that are in desperate straits because their revenues have gone down, their costs have gone up due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

[07:55:00]

So they're laying off cops and firefighters and teachers and nurses and doctors because they simply don't have the money. We need to get the money moving now so that we can begin the process of recovery. This is the beginning not the end of that process, but we have to get started. We've been sitting in the mud not moving for months and months and months and months because of the campaign, now is the time to act.

BERMAN: So, again, as I said, it was a bipartisan group of members of both the Senate and the House who put together this plan. Democratic leaders came out supportive of it last night. The one thing that hasn't happened is Mitch McConnell hasn't come out and said anything about it, not directly. He's put together his own proposal less, much less, it's about $500 billion, if that. What would you say to Mitch McConnell?

HARRIS: Pass the bill, senator. We need a bill, the American people are suffering. This is really a test for Senator McConnell about whether or he is going to spend the next four years obstructing all the things that the American people voted for in 2020 or if he's going to find some way to live up to his principles but still compromise with the incoming administration. He can send a signal early on that he understands that his responsibility is to govern not merely to be a political leader. So, this is a big priority test for him. It's also a test for the members of the Republican caucus to put pressure on him to move forward.

If they want to be obstructionists, if that's their place in history, while they've demonstrated that they can do that. My hope is that they're going to worry more about the American people than about their own political standing.

BERMAN: And one thing I should have added that's also interesting is beyond the senators who are part of the group that put this plan together, there had been a number of Republican senators who came out overnight in support of it. So, it almost definitely has the votes in the Senate to pass on a simple majority, whether McConnell gets behind it or not is a separate thing.

I am curious what you think -- or where you think the economy will be six months from now, because there are a lot of economists now saying that as dire as the situation is now, the outlook for next Summer and beyond is pretty good.

HARRIS: I think that is unduly optimistic and people are looking at the changes in the numbers rather than at the numbers themselves. If we get the kind of job growth that we have seen over the last three or four months, it will take us one and a half years to get back to where we were in February, and that discounts the job growth we would have had if we did not have a pandemic.

I don't think the recovery is going to happen quickly. Now, the news of the vaccine is extremely encouraging, and once that vaccine starts getting out and we get tens of millions of Americans vaccinated against the coronavirus, that's plainly going to make a difference both in the mind-set of Americans, but also in their willingness to do business with one another and get the economy moving again.

There is a lot of pent-up demand in the economy. But that's going to take months and months and months and months. I don't expect us to get back to anything like a semblance of normality until the fourth quarter of 2021, even if the vaccine distribution is immensely successful.

BERMAN: Secretary Seth Harris, as always, thanks so much for being with us, helping us understand where we are, and just so people realize, again, there's more optimism than there has been for a stimulus relief package, doesn't mean it's a done deal. It's a tough needle to thread, we will see if Congress manages to do it in the next few weeks. Appreciate your time.

HARRIS: Thanks, John.

BERMAN: NEW DAY continues right now.

CAMEROTA: We want to welcome our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is NEW DAY, and we begin with breaking news. More people were reported dead from coronavirus in the United States yesterday than any day ever before. More than 2,800 Americans died in just the last 24 hours. And this morning, more than a 100,000 people are hospitalized.

That's also an all-time high. More than 200,000 new coronavirus cases were reported yesterday, and that means that the wave is about to get worse. How much worse? Well, the CDC now projects that the U.S. will add 60,000 more coronavirus deaths by the day after Christmas. Listen to the CDC director.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT REDFIELD, DIRECTOR, CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL & PREVENTION: The reality is December and January and February are going to be rough times. I actually believe they're going to be the most difficult time in the public health's history of this nation. Largely because of the stress that it's going to put on our healthcare system.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: The most difficult period in our history. To be clear, the U.S. reported more deaths yesterday than Japan has suffered the entire pandemic. We did it in just one day. So, faced with the worst health crisis in the history of the nation, what is the president doing? He's trying to overturn the election in public. A string of lies about the election he lost largely to raise money, raise cash for a fund that he can use to fly around the country and throw parties at Mar-a-Lago.