Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

1 in 216 Americans Reporting New Infection in Past Week; Bidens Get First Dose of Vaccine on Monday in Delaware. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired December 18, 2020 - 13:00   ET

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

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Continue being careful, Dana.

[13:00:01]

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: Melissa Bell, thank you so much for that important report.

And thank you for joining us. Brianna Keilar picks up our coverage right now.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN RIGHT NOW: Hello. I am Brianna Keilar, and I want to welcome our viewers here in the United States and around the world.

America's worst case scenarios are coming true as the pandemic is overtaking the country like never before. A new end of week tally finds there were 1.5 million new cases in the last seven days. So that means one out of every 216 Americans reported getting infected just in the past week. More than 233,000 new cases were reported Thursday alone and more than 3,200 deaths.

This week, we had a 9/11 magnitude loss of life on three different days. And the president has not said a consoling word nor even offered a moment of silence. It has been 332 days since the first U.S. case of COVID was reported, and there is still no coordinated national plan. In fact, today one of the re-tweets questioned whether masks even work.

Another day, another record shattered with more than 114,000 patients hospitalized as they fight COVID. Southern California has zero ICU capacity right now, zero. But there is some light on the horizon, and that is newly approved coronavirus vaccine that is being delivered to hospitals and elderly care facilities.

Today, some of the most high profile vaccinations took place. You had the vice president, our own Sanjay Gupta, Surgeon General Jerome Adams, they all received the Pfizer shot, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, you're going to hear more about that shortly.

Medical professionals and leaders are trying to build confidence in a vaccine that has been met with skepticism by many Americans, especially when it comes black Americans who know the nation's history of racism in medical research. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JEROME ADAMS, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: The shameful Tuskegee experiments occurred within many of our lifetimes. To truly promote confidence in these vaccines, we must start by acknowledging this history of mistreatment and exploitation of minorities by the medical community and the government. But then we need to explain and demonstrate all that has been done to correct and address these wrongs.

I know the importance of representation.

And that's why I could not be more pleased or feel more called to receive the vaccine that so many people of color had a hand in developing and testing and it has the potential to correct at least some of the health disparities this pandemic has unveiled.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: In California, it has gone beyond a surge. An L.A. County official says they're under siege. As I mentioned, much of the state has no ICU beds left and just reported its highest number of coronavirus deaths ever in a single day. And in the past week, California has seen a jaw-dropping 270,000 new cases.

CNN Correspondent Dan Simon is in San Francisco for us. So, Dan, what are local and state officials doing to try to stop what appears to, at this point, be an out of control spread?

DAN SIMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brianna, first of all, no question about it, California is in the midst of this unprecedented surge. You have 52,000 cases yesterday, more than 100,000 cases over the past 48 hours. It is putting an enormous strain on the health care system, statewide ICU capacity is at an alarming 3 percent, in Southern California, it is at zero percent.

Now, the state has activated these alternative health care sites, there are 11 of them. And five of them currently have patients.

Now, in terms of what's happening in San Francisco, remember, the city -- this was the first city in the country to issue a stay-at-home order. Well, now, it is taking additional aggressive action. It is saying that if you are coming to the city and you live outside of the bay area, then you need to quarantine for ten days.

Of course, there are some exceptions to that, if you're a health care worker, for instance, but it just goes to show you it is another example that this crisis is not slowing down.

And this pandemic continues to impact our elected leaders in various ways. Eric Garcetti announced yesterday that his nine-year-old daughter has tested positive for the virus, and now he is in quarantine. Brianna?

KEILAR: All right. We certainly wish the best for her. Dan Simon, thank you so much. Tennessee is another state that is currently in crisis. It is seeing an outbreak that is among the worst in the nation. Amid the explosion in cases, the state's governor is urging residents to hunker down as they await the arrival of the vaccine.

We have CNN's Natasha Chen joining us with the latest.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, Tennessee broke its record Wednesday for daily case count, more than 11,000 cases that day alone. It is also the only state in the nation right now with more than 50 percent increase in cases last week compared to the week before.

A lot of the issues are in the eastern part of the state. New York Times made a couple of lists showing where it is worst in the country right now.

[13:05:02]

Unfortunately, Tennessee made those lists a number of times, and that includes Tullahoma, the city next to where we are right now, seeing one of the fastest rises in case numbers adjusted for population. Brianna?

KEILAR: All right, Natasha, thank you so much.

Let's talk now with a medical expert. I want to speak with public health specialist and primary care Dr. Saju Matthew joining us.

I think, Dr. Matthew, a lot of people are wondering when they look at something like Southern California where they have zero capacity in the ICU, what does that mean for patients who need to go to the hospital and may need to be in the ICU?

DR. SAJU MATTHEW, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Right. So that basically means there's no room in the inn, Brianna, and that is unfortunate.

You know, I looked back to see how far we have come when it comes to treating patients with COVID and we have made a lot of advances. We know now that patients need to be laying on their stomach, not on their backs. We have got Dexamethasone. We have a lot of treatments. But treatments will do nobody any good if you don't have rooms in the ICU.

Earlier, about a month or two ago when cases were not as bad, you can convert a regular room to an ICU. But what about the staff, the ICU nurses, the respiratory therapists that are working overtime? And also what worries me, Brianna, is a lot of medical providers are walking away from the field of medicine.

I fought my whole life to become a doctor, and the last thing I want to think is that I am so tired, mentally drained, that the newer generation will not think about being a health care provider. So, unfortunately, rationing of care also becomes a big issue.

And what about people who need regular care? My sister's mother-in-law who is 90 years old went into the hospital last night, Brianna. She was in the E.R. seven hours alone because now with COVID, you have to be basically alone. And can you imagine how lonely she felt.

So lots of things worry me about these cases that are rising.

KEILAR: There's a model, Dr. Matthew, that the White House often cites, the IHME. And it is predicting that there is going to be 562,000 total deaths by April 1st. Put that in context for us.

MATTHEW: Right. So that is over half a million deaths. And when this pandemic is going to be over, what's really sad for me to say as a physician on air is that we're going to find out that a good 80 to 90 percent of these deaths are preventable.

I spoke to a patient the other day who said, Dr. Matthew, are these patients dying because they have diabetes and high blood pressure? And my response to her was no. Having diabetes and high blood pressure is not a death sentence. But if you get COVID and you're over 65, your chances of survival is slim.

And, unfortunately, all of the patients in the ICU right now that are struggling to breathe are not going to be able to get the vaccine. The cavalry has arrived. We've got Moderna joining the mix today. But if we're not healthy and we are not alive to get the vaccine, it is not going to do us any good.

KEILAR: There is the narrative of the vulnerability of older Americans, and I think that's something that is certainly stuck from the beginning in the minds of Americans. But there's new research suggesting that deaths, coronavirus deaths among people age 25 to 44 may have been missed early on in the pandemic.

This is a study that is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association and it said researchers found there were nearly 12,000 more deaths in this age group than expected. So some of them, they could attribute to COVID, not all of them. How likely is it that the other deaths were from coronavirus?

MATTHEW: You know, I think that, ultimately, we are probably underreporting. What we need to realize is in that study that was published by JAMA, these are younger patients, 25 to 44, with 12,000 excess deaths. We are talking about a lot of young people that are not only going to the hospital but are being admitted into the ICU.

If you're sick enough to go to the hospital, there's a 21 percent chance, Brianna, that you will be in the ICU and that you will be intubated, you'll have a tube down your throat. I think the whole messaging to the community that COVID is dangerous if you're over 65, and that if you're young, that it's not a big problem. We need to absolutely change that messaging.

Let's not forget what happened with the epidemic of HIV early on, or the opioid crisis in young people. We never got the message to them early. I think it is important to also realize that African-Americans and Latinos form a good number of excess deaths. And if you have high blood pressure, you're obese and you're diabetic, then your risk for dying from COVID goes up significantly.

And one last thing, Brianna, as I almost feel like the young people need to be pumped up the list when it comes to vaccines, because they have given up on the pandemic, they're transmitting the virus, and a good number of our young people are asymptomatic.

[13:10:06]

KEILAR: It's a very good point. It's certainly something to discuss. Dr. Matthew, thank you for being with us.

SAJU: Thank you.

KEILAR: Members of Congress are now among the first group of Americans to get the new COVID vaccine. And just moments ago, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was vaccinated by the Capitol's attending physician.

For more on this development, I want to bring in Manu Raju who is covering this from Capitol Hill.

This all happened pretty fast, Manu. Pelosi had said that she expected to get the shot in the next few days. So are we going to see more members of Congress following her lead?

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It seems that way. It is definitely moving fast. It was not expected necessarily to go to all members of Congress but all 535 members of Congress and the House and the Senate are eligible to get the vaccine. And some members of the rank and file also are indicating they plan to get their own vaccination soon, including Congressman Don Beyer, whose office tweeted that he plans to do so this afternoon.

And on your screen there, you're seeing pictures of the shot being administered during the Capitol physician's office, Dr. Brian Monahan. Monahan informed Congress under that under government continuity guidelines that they are all eligible to receive this vaccine.

And Pelosi in the aftermath of receiving the vaccine said in a statement today with confidence and science and the direction of the office of the attending physician, I received the COVID-19 vaccine.

Now, Mitch McConnell, the Senate majority leader, also has indicated that he plans to get vaccinated in the coming days. We'll see other members of leadership as well.

This is also an institution which had not even had a real full-on testing regime for some time. It wasn't until last few weeks, Brianna, that there actually has been testing regime on Capitol Hill. But now, they are moving forward to getting this vaccine. A lot of these members, of course, travel back to their home districts and states, come back to the Capitol, so, important to not spread the disease because already 50 members of the House and the Senate have contracted it within the last several months. Brianna?

KEILAR: Yes. Manu, thank you so much for that, Manu Raju on Capitol Hill.

The Pentagon today is denying that it canceled meetings with Joe Biden's transition team and we are told that they may not resume for awhile.

Plus, it comes as the president remains silent on the suspected Russian hack, the one being called so massive that it is not yet known what secrets the Russians have.

And one year ago, the House impeached President Trump. How would American lives be different now if the Senate had convicted him?

This is CNN special live coverage.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:15:00]

KEILAR: Just in, President-elect Joe Biden and Jill Biden will receive the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Monday. His transition says this is going to happen in Delaware. And we are told that Vice President-elect Kamala Harris will receive hers the following week. Dr. Fauci said this week that Biden should get it as soon as possible.

And today, we are learning more about the scale and scope of a massive cyber attack on government agencies and private entities here in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's cyber arm says suspected Russian hackers used a variety of unidentified tactics, not just a single compromised software program.

In a statement, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency says, and this is a quote, CISA has determined that this threat poses a grave risk to the federal government and state, local, tribal and territorial governments as well as critical infrastructure entities and other private sector organizations. CISA expects that removing this threat actor from compromised environments will be highly complex and challenging for organizations.

Joining us now for some very important perspective is former Defense Secretary and former CIA Director Leon Panetta.

Secretary, first, when you are trying to put this into context, I think it is sometimes difficult compared to say a physical attack that Americans are able to see. This is something that is a little abstract. They can't necessarily see the threat. So, put this into perspective for us.

LEON PANETTA, FORMER DEFENSE SECRETARY: Well, I've always said that cyber is the battlefield of the future. And the nightmare we've always worried about is a broad cyber attack that goes after our most important agencies and companies, and really provides the basis for almost paralyzing our country as a consequence.

What we're seeing right now is, without question, the gravest cyber attack against the United States that we've seen. And the danger here is this isn't just about spying by the Russians. It's actually an attempt that can destroy, can alter the truth and can undermine trust in data. It is a very serious and dangerous attack by the Russians.

KEILAR: And so Russia is suspected right now to be behind this attack. It hasn't been confirmed. But that certainly does appear to be the assessment right now.

Knowing that, what can the U.S. do in response?

PANETTA: Well, there are a number of steps that are needed to be taken. I mean, obviously, since this impacted our nuclear labs, on the Pentagon, on treasury, on commerce, it is very important to put these agencies, these critical agencies on alert because once these viruses have been planted, the Russians, assuming that it is the Russians and I believe it is, can ultimately continue to be able to take over systems and, as I said, destroy information.

[13:20:08]

So put them on alert, develop cyber hunters that can go out and determine where these cyber attacks have occurred, where they've taken place so we can identify it. Obviously, confirm that it is the Russians. And then if that is the case, I think make very clear to the Russians that this is not only unacceptable but that the United States will take action to make sure that the Russians pay a price.

We should have done this a long time ago, particularly when they were attacking our election systems using cyber. But they've never gotten that message from the United States. And so they're continuing to obviously take advantage of our systems without any kind of price being paid. That's wrong.

KEILAR: We have found out that this cyber campaign began quite awhile ago, as early as March. Several sources have said the U.S. government was unaware of the breach until the end of last week. How is that possible?

PANETTA: Brianna, cyber capabilities and technology have, for a long time, continued to develop new approaches. And one of the approaches we've always worried about is the approach of being able to deploy a virus into a system and not activate it immediately, activate it in another three, four, five or six months.

And I think what has happened here is that these viruses have been deployed into the sensitive agencies and it now gives -- assuming it is the Russians, it gives them the capability to be able to destroy computers, to alter information and to really undermine trust in our data system. This is a very serious attack by the Russians.

KEILAR: And yet President Trump hasn't said anything about it. What does that signify to the Russians who are suspected to be behind this?

PANETTA: Well, it's always been astounding to me that the president of the United States has never made a clear statement to Putin and to the Russians that this kind of behavior is unacceptable and will not be tolerated by the United States. And the president right now continues to remain silent in the face of a clear cyber attack against the United States. It is very important -- I mean, the Russians are now getting a message that they can continue to do this anytime they want. They need to get exactly the opposite message, which is that this will not be tolerated and that we will strike back and make them pay a price for what they're doing.

KEILAR: Secretary Panetta, we are always grateful to have you on. Thank you.

PANETTA: Thanks, Brianna.

KEILAR: The clock ticking as tonight's government shutdown deadline approaches and Congress is still without a COVID stimulus bill.

Plus, one senator says he's got plans if this vote doesn't happen tonight. Hear what they are.

And one year ago, the House impeached President Trump. How would American lives be different right now if the Senate had convicted him?

This is CNN special live coverage.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[13:25:00]

KEILAR: It probably seems like a lifetime ago, but it was just one year ago today that the House of Representatives voted on and approved two articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump for abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. And that made him just the third president in U.S. history to be impeached by Congress.

In early February, following a nearly three-week long trial in the Senate, a divided Senate voted 52-48 to acquit the president.

We have CNN Presidential Historian Douglas Brinkley with us to talk about this. And, you know, I know this is sort of looking back on what would have been, what could have been, but we saw in that initial phone call that prompted impeachment, we saw the president's misuse of office. It was an abuse of power.

The Senate certainly could not have foreseen what has been his neglect to handle this pandemic and the ensuing economic crisis, but what do you think the government response would have looked like if Mike Pence had been in charge instead of Donald Trump?

DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Well, it would have been a lot different, Brianna. There's no evidence that Pence is involved with Russia. And you just had a very sobering interview with Secretary Panetta.

This incredible scenario of Donald Trump's refusal to ever criticize, say anything wrong about Putin and the Russian government and he's willing to encourage interference on our elections, Donald Trump, if he had been impeached and actually the Senate got rid of him, it would have been a large message to foreign countries.