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Relief Programs Expire Within Days as Trump Threatens Stimulus Bill; House GOP Blocks Trump's Demand for $2,000 Stimulus Checks, Full Vote Set for Monday; Trump pardons Manafort, Stone, & Jared Kushner's Father. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired December 24, 2020 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:12]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer and this is a Situation Room Special Report.

On this Christmas Eve, there is no holiday from the pain of the pandemic, or the chaos unleashed by the President of the United States in his final days. He's been golfing down in Florida, while a desperately needed $900 billion COVID Relief Bill remains in limbo right now.

Members of his own party rejecting the President's 11th Hour demand increased stimulus checks to $2,000 as House Democrats push to approve it by unanimous consent. A full vote is now expected Monday.

Tonight, so many Americans are clinging to hope for a better New Year with COVID-19 vaccines now in the picture. But this final month of 2020 is now on track to be the deadliest of the pandemic. More than 328,000 Americans have lost their lives to the coronavirus, total cases now top 18 and a half million and the numbers keep rising and rising.

Let's begin our coverage this hour with our White House Correspondent Jeremy Diamond covering the president down in Florida. Jeremy, there's no sign at all that he has done anything to clear up the turmoil he left behind here in Washington.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf, after threatening to blow up this $900 billion coronavirus relief bill you would think that the President would be trying to salvage this desperately needed relief for Americans working the phones, meeting with advisors, especially on this Christmas Eve, Wolf, we have millions of Americans who are out of work, millions who are slipping into poverty, and yet the President was doing none of those things. Instead, the President was back on his golf course working on his putt.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: After throwing financial relief for millions of Americans into Limbo, President Trump decamped to his Mar-a-Lago resort and quickly set his sights on his golf game. The President hitting the links after a pre-Christmas threat to sink legislation providing $900 billion in desperately needed coronavirus aid, even as the White House last night said the President would quote continue to work tirelessly for the American people. His schedule includes many meetings and calls.

But as the president tees off, more than 20 million Americans are out of work. Nearly 8 million have fallen into poverty since the summer and supplemental unemployment benefits are set to expire at the end of the week. The President's refusal to sign the spending package could also trigger a government shutdown on Tuesday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Bill HR 9047 and I asked for immediate consideration in the House.

DIAMOND: Even as Trump demanded Congress triple $600 stimulus checks to Americans, House Republicans objecting Tuesday to Democrats attempts to amend that provision by unanimous consent.

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL, (D) MICHIGAN: It is Christmas Eve, but it is not a silent night. All is not calm for too many, nothing is bright. And for too many they are not sleeping peacefully.

DIAMOND: The President remains fixated on reversing the election he lost even complaining that his forever loyal vice president isn't fighting hard enough, re-tweeting a call for Pence to accept Electoral College votes during a pro-forma session of Congress on January 6, a breach of Pence's constitutional duty. Two sources telling CNN Trump and Pence spent more than an hour together in the Oval Office yesterday before that retweet, and that Trump has been quote confused as to why Pence can't step in to overturn the election.

The President also plowing ahead with more controversial pardons, a day after pardoning two men who lied to special counsel Robert Mueller's investigators and three corrupt former Republican congressman Trump issuing 26 more pardons, including to his longtime political adviser Roger Stone, who lied to congressional investigators to protect Trump and Paul Manafort, the former Trump campaign chairman who stopped cooperating with Mueller's team and then lied to prosecutors.

ANDREW MCCABE, FORMER FBI DEPUTY DIRECTOR: You have a president who is actively engaged in undermining the system of justice that he is supposed to protect and defend. It's remarkably disgusting.

DIAMOND: Republican Senator Ben Sasse slamming the pardons as rotten to the core and Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen, who did cooperate with prosecutors said Trump's pardons show how broken the whole criminal justice system is. This is wrong. But that's not all. Trump also pardoning his son-in-law Jared Kushner's father, Charles Kushner, who was prosecuted by Republican Chris Christie.

CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), FORMER NEW JERSEY GOVERNOR: If a guy hires a prostitute to seduce his brother-in-law, and videotapes it and then sends the video tape to his sister to attempt to intimidate hear from testified before a grand jury, do I really need any more justification than that? (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

[17:05:07]

DIAMOND: And, Wolf, President Trump also issuing the traditional presidential holiday message this evening in a video with the First Lady Melania Trump, wishing Americans a very Merry Christmas but as always, Wolf, it's the President's tweets that tell the true story of where the President's head is at and today, Wolf, the President was on a Twitter spree criticizing Senate Republicans for not backing his efforts to steal the 2020 election and also tweeting this voter fraud is not a conspiracy theory, it is a fact. But, Wolf, while there may be instances of voter fraud, there certainly is no evidence of the kind of widespread voter fraud that President Trump has been talking about nonstop.

BLITZER: Just ask his now former Attorney General Bill Barr he specifically said a few times, no evidence of widespread voter fraud at all. Jeremy, standby, we're going to get back to you in a moment. Let's get an update now on the fate of the COVID-19 Relief Bill, the threat of a government shutdown and the hand wringing up on Capitol Hill. Our Congressional Correspondent Phil Mattingly is tracking all of this for us.

Phil, the President's demand to increase stimulus checks is putting members of his own party in a real bind. What's the latest?

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, no question about it. Well, Wolf, the bill itself is physically on its way to the President. It is being flown as we speak to Florida for the President to decide what he wants to do. What we don't know is what he will do.

Now, today, House Democrats attempted by unanimous consent, as you noted, Wolf, to try and expand those direct payments to $2,000. As the president requested, Republicans blocked it. Republicans are also expected to mostly vote against a similar bill in an up or down fashion on Monday. Senate Republicans making clear there aren't the votes in the Senate to expand checks to that level, all of this, Wolf, underscoring this reality at this moment. There is no alternative. There is no secret Plan B, there is the president needs to sign this bill, or there's no other option. That's basically what I've been told by Democrats and Republicans everybody waiting to see.

And, Wolf, a couple things to keep in mind here. One, this isn't just a COVID relief package. This is also funding for the government through the fiscal year. There will be a government shutdown on Monday if the President does not sign the bill. And obviously, the stakes, Jeremy hit them, the 12 to 13 million people that would lose unemployment benefits at this on December 26. You have increased food aid, you have the extension of the eviction moratorium, all of the different pieces of this puzzle here trying to provide a safety net for Americans hurting right now from the coronavirus pandemic and the economic aftershocks from that right now, though, all in the hands of the president with nobody really sure what he's going to do, Wolf.

BLITZER: Millions and millions of Americans are going to suffer right after Christmas unless something gets done and done right away. All right, Phil, stay with us. I want to bring back our White House Correspondent, Jeremy Diamond, along with Jackie Alemany, the author of The Washington Post, Newsletter Power Up.

Jackie, let's talk about what's going on right now. We could be ending 2020, hard to believe with a government shutdown millions of Americans losing critical pandemic benefits a wave of evictions all across the country. Does President Trump understand the real implications the disaster of derailing this deal?

JACKIE ALEMANY, AUTHOR, THE WASHINGTON POST "POWER UP": I think this president does understand. But what I think we can deduce from his actions over the past few weeks, and really, quite frankly, since the election, is that this President does not care about lighting everything on fire on his way out with just, you know, 27 days until Inauguration Day. This obviously is not a game, as Phil and Jeremy both noted, millions of Americans are on the precipice of a benefit and an eviction cliff.

There's food assistance on the line here and eviction moratorium, lots of really consequential things. But this doesn't stop the president from waiting until the 11th Hour and playing games, quite frankly.

The House Democrats, however, do agree with the President's push to include more money in the stimulus package. And that would be increasing the direct payments to $2,000 aides have told The Washington Post that right now it's 50/50 with things looking slightly less than 50% potentially. It's really a crapshoot up in the air what this President is going to do, but regardless, things are hanging in the balance potentially in disarray. And, you know, Americans well, beings on the line.

BLITZER: Yeah, House Democrats would love that $2,000 stimulus check for so many millions of Americans. The problem is a lot of House Republicans and plenty of Senate Republicans don't want to even get close to that number.

You know, Phil, the White House says President Trump is working tirelessly for the American people. But once again today was not playing golf down in Palm Beach County, not far from Mar-a-Lago in his golf club down there. Does that leave Congress to try to clean up this mess? Can they really clean it up?

MATTINGLY: Yeah, the answer is no. And I think that's the issue right now. That's the biggest problem that I've heard repeatedly from lawmakers in their top aides who are very frustrated at this moment is they don't feel like there's anything they can do. You take how long it actually took for them to reach agreement on COVID relief, almost eight months. It's been just a disastrous effort for so many weeks at a time that never went anywhere. They finally figured out a way to thread the needle.

[17:10:09]

And while it's not enough for many people, it's too much for some people it was enough to get plenty of votes in both the House and the Senate. Reopening the package simply isn't an option based on what I'm being told right now. And so Congress for all of its capability for the intelligence of its staff members for what it can do legislatively is kind of in a bind right now. Everybody wrote, Wolf, really is in wait and see mode, and perhaps wait and see we'll have to override a veto, perhaps wait and see, well, they have to try and keep the government open against the President's wishes. But mostly just hoping and praying and those are the words I keep hearing from multiple aides on both sides of the aisle. It's hope and pray time right now that the President decides once he receives that bill off that airplane later tonight, he actually decides to sign it at some point over the course the next couple days.

BLITZER: So Jeremy, who has the President's ear, now that he's down at his residence at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach? Is there anyone left who can reason with the president?

DIAMOND: Well, I don't know about people who can reason with the president, but there certainly will be a lot of people in the presidency or as he spends the holidays, here at his resort at Mar-a- Lago. This is the place where the President's advisors, White House advisors get the most nervous and that is because the president is around so many people, so many of his acquaintances and friends from the Palm Beach area, as well as his political allies who come down here when he is here as well, in order to try and bend his ear and influence his decision making. And obviously, at a time when the President is already in such a volatile state about overturning the 2020 election, there is an enormous concern, I have to say about what those people who are going to be in his ear how that will affect the President's behavior.

And I think, Wolf, it is also remarkable to see that at a time when you have so many millions of Americans who are out of work, who are slipping into poverty, the president not only golfing, but also not taking the time to focus on trying to renegotiate this bill, not taking the time to do what many presidents do around the holidays to go to a food pantry, or to try and help struggling Americans. We are seeing none of that from the president. Instead, his priorities seem to be all about himself, whether it is issuing these pardons that bring him a sense of gratification in that help his political allies, or whether it is these efforts to overturn an election that he lost and he refuses to accept.

BLITZER: And Jackie, the president, he is clearly ramping up the pressure on his allies to try to fight the results of the election, including the pressure on the vice president that could put him in a very, very uncomfortable position. We're talking about Mike Pence, so couldn't it?

ALEMANY: Yeah, it could exactly. And but look, I think we really need to stay up front, the President and his allies have already lost upwards of 40 legal challenges and seeking to subvert the 2020 election results that President-elect Joe Biden decisively won a month ago. And but this President has continued to spread unfounded claims. We've reported extensively on the ragtag team of conspiracy theorists, lawyers and advisors that the President has put together in order to explore and really push the bounds of what is constitutionally, you know, legal here, but January 6, is a date that we're all watching. And the President and Vice President Pence have had conversations about, you know, how Vice President Pence will oversee the Senate when times come -- when the time comes for members to actually vote on the Electoral College. Procedurally, it's a bit complicated, and it's unlikely to actually materialize despite the strength, the, you know, strategy that the President is trying to employ and wrangling members in order to contest the results of the Electoral College. But this President is not going to give up trying, especially as it's boosting his fundraising numbers.

BLITZER: Yeah, that's important and clear that the Electoral College made it official 306, 232, Biden the winner, Trump the loser, that's the official count from the Electoral College. So it's over 27 days to go until Biden is sworn in as the next president of the United States.

Guys, everybody standby, the President-elect is well aware of that on almost daily basis, President Trump is making his job potentially even harder. Let's go to CNN's Jessica Dean. She's in Wilmington, Delaware, covering the transition for us. So what's the latest? Jessica, what are you hearing?

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, Wolf. President- elect Joe Biden sat down with some columnists yesterday to talk about what he's going to face when he comes into office. And he talked about that very thing you just mentioned, what President Trump and his political appointees will be leaving behind for him and his new administration, and a quote that is so telling, listen to this, he said, "What this President has done and what his political appointees have done and what landmines are laid out there, I can't tell you that I have a clear view of what they are. Many of the people with the competence to be able to tell us what exactly is going on, they've either been fired or they've left."

[17:15:06]

So President-elect Biden very aware that he has a lot to assess once he gets into office that he may not even be able to assess currently, as it stands now, that was specific to President Trump and his political appointees when it came to congressional Republicans, though, Wolf interesting to note that Biden really kept his tone and his message about bipartisanship, really leaning into that and saying that he believes it is the way forward. He said he's not ready. He's ready for a fight. He's willing to fight. But he said a blood match made sure that nothing gets done, and he does not want anything like that. Wolf.

BLITZER: That's based on his own experience in the U.S. Senate for so many years. He wants to work together, Democrats and Republicans and he keeps expressing that tone. Jessica, thank you very, very much.

Up next, the President Trump sabotages the COVID relief bill, how long will Americans have to wait? How long will they have to wait to get new stimulus checks? I'll speak to a leading House Democrat. And U.S. Air travel now setting a new record for the pandemic despite serious warnings of the dangers. We're going to get a new assessment of the likely post holiday COVID search. This is a Situation Room Special Report.

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[17:20:04]

BLITZER: On this Christmas eve, President Trump is at his resort in Palm Beach, Florida giving no indication at all about whether he will sign the bill containing $900 billion in desperately needed coronavirus relief. Let's discuss with the Democratic Representative David Cicilline of Rhode Island. He's joining us right now.

Congressman, thank you so much for joining us. The holidays are here. But the country is facing the prospect of a government shutdown. Also the prospect that crucial pandemic benefits will expire for millions and millions of Americans who are in desperate need right now, is all of this in the hands of the president right now?

REP. DAVID CICILLINE (D-RI): Unfortunately, Wolf, it is. I mean, what the President is doing is unconscionable. People are hurting, really suffering because of the economic consequences and the public health consequences of this pandemic. We work together in a bipartisan way and pass a relief package, didn't have nearly enough in it, but it was a downpayment, a beginning that provides extended unemployment, an eviction moratorium, direct cash assistance to families rental assistance, vaccine at distribution testing regime, really important stuff in small business assistance, all of that is now up in the air because the President has not decided whether or not he's going to sign this bill.

And, you know, this is not an episode of The Apprentice he's playing with people's lives with the well being of the American people are in desperate need of this help of this unemployment assistance of this survival checks. And what the President is doing is unconscionable.

BLITZER: If the President does veto, we don't know if he will. But if he were to veto this COVID Relief Bill $900 billion, how much longer will these Americans who are relying on it have to wait until they get this desperately needed help?

CICILLINE: Well, he's delayed it already, of course, as a result of his inaction. We would have to override the veto. We'll be back in Washington on Monday to override the veto on the defense authorization. We should -- we'll do the same if he vetoes this, but he is unnecessarily delaying desperately needed relief to the American people, whether it's by one day or two days or a week. It's really unforgivable. It's people are, I know, here in Rhode Island, but all across this country are really hurting are living paycheck to paycheck, someone without jobs, hungry because they need food assistance, facing eviction, because they haven't been able to pay their rent.

And this is Christmas Eve. We tried to do unanimous consent this morning. And the Republicans objected to an effort to increase it to $2,000. But look, the President has been absent from these negotiations. He's been so focused on trying to spread disinformation about his election loss, that he hasn't been actively engaged in this work.

BLITZER: At the same time, the President has, you know, issued yet another wave of pardons last night, but he may only just be getting started. We hear one of these partners tell you about how President Trump views his presidential powers during these final 27 days in office?

CICILLINE: These cartons are sickening. This is a president who has undermined the rule of law, who sees the use of presidential pardons as a way to advance his own self interest to protect his political allies, to reward people who obstructed the investigation that surrounded his administration and his conduct.

And, you know, we have people who have been convicted of war crimes. We have corrupt members of Congress, we have many of the people that Robert Mueller convicted in his investigation, and the President sees the use of the pardon power not to repair some injustice, not to do remediate some problem that occurred in our justice system but to vindicate his own power to protect his own interests and his political allies. It's really disturbing.

The good news is, anyone who gets a presidential pardon no longer enjoys a Fifth Amendment privilege, because they can no longer be criminally prosecuted. All these individuals can now be compelled to testify truthfully, before the Congress of the United States and I look forward to bringing those witnesses before the judiciary committee with lots of questions for them that they now are going to be required to answer.

BLITZER: Thanks so much for joining us on this Christmas Eve, Representative David Cicilline. Good luck during this holiday season for you. Happy New Year, let's hope 2021 is going to be a better year than 2020. I appreciate it very much.

CICILLINE: Thank you, Wolf, let's hope so.

BLITZER: Coming up, how soon will the death rate drop as more and more Americans are vaccinated? We have new information just coming into the Situation Room.

I will also have very important tips on how to keep your holiday celebrations as safe as possible during this deadly pandemic. Stay with us, you're in a Situation Room.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:28:01]

BLITZER: Tonight as Americans endure one more week of 2020 this last month of the year is on track to be the deadliest of the entire coronavirus pandemic going back to January with the death toll rising now above 328,000.

Let's go to CNN's Lucy Kafanov. She's joining us from Los Angeles right now. Lucy even as vaccines are being rolled out in significant numbers, sadly, we're seeing alarming trends on this Christmas Eve, update our viewers.

LUCY KAFANOV, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf, the word Merry doesn't really feel like it applies this Christmas. I mean we have cases and deaths on the rise all across the nation. There are now two more potentially contagious strains of the vaccine floating around and air travel is reaching record highs during the pandemic. It's a recipe for disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm Santa Claus.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is definitely essential worker because he is the one that brings the joy and keeps everybody's spirits up.

[17:30:00]

KAFANOV: It's a Christmas like no other.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You like to open presents?

KAFANOV: Holiday cheer dampened by the coronavirus pandemic. On Wednesday, the nation reporting more than 220,000 new COVID-19 cases, the death toll surpassing 3,300 cases on the rise across six states, the number in California alone surpassing 2 million deaths also on the rise in 18 states.

DR. PETER HOTEZ, PROFESSOR AND DEAN OF TROPICAL MEDICINE, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: Right now COVID-19 is the single leading cause of death in the United States on a daily basis that's how tragic this is a.

KAFANOV: A preventable tragedy.

DR. ALI KHAN DEAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER'S COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: More lives would be saved in January if every state did a mask mandate than will be saved by vaccine in January.

KAFANOV: And there are more dark days ahead. The University of Washington's influential Coronavirus Model projects more than half a million Americans will die of COVID-19 by April 1, despite the vaccine, but if mask use were to expand from 75% to 95%, nearly 50,000 lives could be saved.

Meanwhile, those shots of hope keep on coming. More than a million doses administered. U.S. officials have promised 20 million would be vaccinated by the end of the year, but they're expecting to fall short of their goal with a head of Operation Warp Speed acknowledging those doses probably won't get there until January.

REP. RAUL RUIZ, M.D. (D) CALIFORNIA: This is not the time to have large indoor mask less parties, holiday parties. This is the time to hunker down because we're going to go into Christmas. So two weeks after that you're going to see another search. KAFANOV: Despite the warnings, Americans keep hitting the skies. The TSA says it screen nearly 1.2 million people on Wednesday, a new pandemic record.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were really torn. You know, we want to see our family.

KAFANOV: In California were hospitalized to use remain near or at full capacity, doctors are worried about another surge following the holidays.

DR. RODNEY BORGER, ARROWHEAD REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER: We have two very large holidays where people mix and travel. And I really don't see them or the people that I talk to I really don't see them, curtailing some of those activities.

KAFANOV: Yeah. So you're prepared for some dark weeks?

BORGER: We're prepared for the worst, hoping for the best.

KAFANOV: The nation's top infectious disease experts leading by example, celebrating his 80th birthday today virtually.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I definitely feel sad. This is the first holiday season of Christmas and my birthday that I have not spent with my daughters since they were born. I need to practice what I preach to the country and my message has been for the holidays, we should, you know, curtail travel to this send possible.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAFANOV: And that's the message that could save lives. I mean, this is not the time to let our guard down. You heard in my piece if every single person wore a mask that could prevent more deaths than the vaccine next month. You know, enjoy your Christmas Eve, but do it safely. Wolf?

BLITZER: Good advice, Lucy Kafanov in L.A. for us. Thank you.

Joining us now is CNN Medical Analyst Dr. Leana Wen, an Emergency Room Physician, former Baltimore Health Commissioner. Dr. Wen, thank you so much for joining us. How worried are you to see this surge, this dramatic surge in Christmas travel and I assume the surge is going to continue through New Years?

DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Well, if I'm extremely worried at this point, it's not a matter of whether we're going to see a surge over the holidays. It's a matter of how bad it's going to be. We saw a surge after every major holiday after Memorial Day, after Fourth of July, after Labor Day. And now our hospitals and ICUs are filled with people who got infected around Thanksgiving. And now we have people who are traveling from all over the country and probably many of them are asymptomatic carriers who are going to be gathering indoors with their loved ones inadvertently spreading coronavirus. And then people are going to go back to their home communities and then maybe get sick there. So I really worry about this and I hope that everybody will listen to the public health guidance that what happens in the next several weeks and next several months are really up to us. It's our behaviors that will determine how many deaths will occur this winter.

BLITZER: The death toll, Doctor Wen, just yesterday, one day was the third highest of the pandemic Johns Hopkins University says 3,359 Americans were reported dead, just yesterday and one day from this pandemic. But do you fear that the country has given up on the measures used early on to contain a transmission now that vaccinations, thank God, around the way?

WEN: I do think that there is a false sense of security that people are thinking well vaccines are here and while that's amazing news, we also know that it will take some time. It will take months for vaccines to be rolled out. It won't take maybe half a year or more for us to get to herd immunity in this country so that everybody is able to be protected from coronavirus. And in that meantime, we still have to really double down and do the masking, physical distancing, avoiding indoor gatherings.

[17:35:15]

I will say there are people, including our federal government, whom seems to have given up, but there are still so many others who have not, and there are millions upon millions of Americans will have already sacrificed so much during this pandemic. And I don't want for their sacrifices to go in vain. And so we should also honor those people as well, our frontline workers, but also everyday people who are doing a lot of things including giving up seeing their loved ones over this holiday, and I commend them for everything they are doing to save lives.

BLITZER: Me too. As, you know, the head of Operation Warp Speed says the mortality rate at the long term care facilities will start to go down within weeks of the first vaccinations. That is encouraging, isn't it?

WEN: Very much so, we know that a large percentage of the mortality of the people who have died thus far in the epidemic are individuals who reside in nursing homes. So I'm really glad that they are prioritized in this initial tranche of vaccines. Also, these are individuals who are more likely to get severely ill, and who then end up filling our hospitals. And so vaccinating these individuals also helps us to reduce the demand on our very limited hospital and ICU capacity to.

BLITZER: Dr. Leana Wen, thank you so much for joining us. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year. We'll see you soon. I appreciate everything you're doing.

WEN: Happy Holidays. Thank you.

BLITZER: Thank you very much. I want to take a moment to personally wish Dr. Fauci a very, very happy 80th birthday and join millions of millions of Americans in thanking him for his service during this pandemic. Dr. Fauci was chaired by emergency workers, as he left the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland last night. They then launched with the singing happy birthday. It was a really, really moving moment. Dr. Fauci has done so much for all of us, not just now but over these many, many years. He saved so many American lives. He's a national treasure. We are all grateful to him. And we are grateful that he is going to continue his service, even though he's 80 years old. He's going to be working with the incoming Biden administration to help us all get through this crisis. And we want to thank him so much.

By the way, the D.C. Mayor also is marking this milestone for the nation's top infectious disease expert by proclaiming today Dr. Anthony S. Fauci Day. Good work, Congratulations to Dr. Fauci. He's terrific.

Coming up, we'll have more on the President's complaint the Vice President Mike Pence should be doing more to overturn the democratically held election here in the United States.

Plus, what's ahead for millions of desperate Americans as coronavirus relief hangs in limbo. This is the Situation Room Special Report.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:41:38]

BLITZER: While millions of doses of the new coronavirus vaccine are shipping out to all the states in the country, we're seeing a significant and rather alarming lag in how many people are actually getting the shots at least so far, nationally, we're nearing 9.5 million doses delivered. But far fewer have been administered just over 1 million.

Massachusetts, by the way, has received roughly 321,000 doses of the vaccine. But we don't have any firm data about how many of those have actually been administer.

Joining us now, the mayor of Boston, Marty Walsh. Mayor Walsh, thank you so much for joining us. Do you have an estimate of how many vaccinations have been completed in your beautiful city so far?

MAYOR MARTY WALSH, (D) BOSTON: Not yet. We haven't got that number yet. I know that our public health department is working closely with the state. And I know that they've had many conversations with the hospitals to get it out to the hospital workers. But I don't have any confirmed data at that particular moment for you.

BLITZER: The rollout, as we know, is incredibly complicated what roadblocks have come up so far, at least where you are. And do you expect the pace of vaccinations to pick up as the issues get smoothed out?

WALSH: I think the roadblocks that we're seeing right now is probably not enough vaccinations, a lot of people are asking about it. They're inquiring about it. There's different tiers of people getting vaccinated. The first one going on now. I think that we haven't seen that, so they're big roadblocks yet. But I think what we're working on right now is getting a process as we get more and more vaccines that comes to the city of Boston in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we're going to be able to get them out to shoot very quickly.

For the most part, the state has been handling the distribution, but our public health department in the city because we're pretty large public health department, probably bigger than lots of cities, in lots of towns around America, we're getting ready to tip to be more active engaged in that process as we get more vaccines.

BLITZER: You say the next two months could be the worst of the entire pandemic. Mayor, what are your biggest concerns?

WALSH: You know, I've been listening to Dr. Fauci and Happy Birthday to Dr. Fauci. He is a great American. And he's been a guiding light in a lot of ways through this pandemic. Other experts have said that, you know, January probably could be the worst month, obviously, we saw a spike after Thanksgiving, here in Boston, and in Massachusetts, around the country. We're probably going to see even a bigger spike after Christmas, because many, many more people have been traveling.

So my concern is right now tonight, people that are all over this country celebrating the holidays with their families, I'm asking you to be careful, I'm asking you to wear a mask. I'm asking you to, you know, no contacts with people, even though you traveled, it's really important that we do everything we can to keep this virus down. This virus has taken over 300 plus -- 300,000 American lives in Boston, nearly 1000 in our city. So it's really incumbent upon all of us to -- during these holiday seasons, to do everything we can to protect yourself, protect your family. My concern is that we don't do that. My concern is that we see this spike that will take many, many more lives and will overburden our hospitals and cause more greater damage to our economy.

BLITZER: Well, that's good advice. Everybody's got to be really, really careful, especially now because we're on the brink of millions and millions of Americans getting the vaccines. So you just got to write it out and wear those masks, socially distance. It's so critical. Before I let you go, Mayor, you're in contention. We understand the service labor secretary in the new Biden administration. If you were asked offered that position, would you accept?

[17:45:03]

WALSH: Listen, it's an honor to be mentioned, I love being the mayor of the city of Boston. I love representing the people of our city. And that's what I intend on doing. And, you know, I'm excited about President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President, Kamala Harris. What they have done already with their cabinet, what they've done with their plans. I'm looking forward to working with them in 2021.

BLITZER: Have they reached out to you at all? Are you -- do you know if they're vetting you, for example, are they questioning you? Have you spoken to them? WALSH: It's pretty much all speculation. I'm not spoken to the President-elect since he got elected. I was on a zoom with him. He spoke to the U.S. Conference of Mayors along with the Vice President- elect and we didn't have a personal conversation, but they're great people and they're making the right decisions all across the board here. So whatever they decide, I wholeheartedly support.

BLITZER: Yeah, they're moving pretty quickly with all these cabinet positions and senior positions as well. Merry Christmas, Happy New Year, stay safe out there. We will stay in touch. Mayor, I appreciate it very much.

WALSH: Thank you, Wolf, Merry Christmas everyone out there and happy holidays to all.

BLITZER: I totally agree.

Coming up, as millions and millions of Americans rely on food banks right now and emergency distribution centers, rather than Trump is actually believe it or not holding up desperately needed relief money right now get reaction from Chef Jose Andres, who is working tirelessly to make sure people get fed, you see him live. We'll discuss when we come back.

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[17:50:54]

BLITZER: We still don't know whether President Trump will veto the legislation containing $900 billion in coronavirus relief are desperately needed Americans. But we do have some dramatic visual proof of how urgently help is needed. We're seeing unbelievably long lines at food banks and emergency disparate distribution centers all across the United States.

Let's bring in the Chef Jose Andres to help us appreciate what's going on. He's the Founder of the World Central Kitchen, which does such important work in feeding people, not only the United States, but around the world.

You know, Jose, this has been an incredibly difficult year. But it's especially hard for families struggling right now around the holidays. Based on everything you've seen, how desperate is the situation right now?

JOSE ANDRES, CHEF/OWNER, THINKFOODGROUP: Well, we know that more than 27 million people said that they didn't know what to put on the table for fulfilling their families. Last month, probably the number is all the way to 40, 50 million. The situation is desperate. We are in places like a puzzle, helping feed hospitals, where the system breaks, we see lines everywhere. We are a Navajo Nation. We are in many cities across America with -- because one very simple reason families are hungry, and families sometimes don't know how to feed themselves. The situation is there and the White House is not doing enough.

BLITZER: You've said Jose that the COVID Relief Deal of the $900 billion dollars actually falls short in addressing the hunger crisis. And now even that, as we know is up in the air with President Trump hinting at a veto. What's your message to the president tonight?

ANDRES: Well, actually, the actual president the White House, I don't think we have my message. I cannot take like he should be proud of what's happening. But I have a message for the incoming President- elect. We need a food, the same way we have the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to make sure America is not attacked by terrorists.

Let me tell you, President-elect Biden, if you are watching, we do need the Office of the National Director of Food and Nutrition. We need to make sure that we work across administration's to come with smart policies that are with the structure, that they have authority and should be enough piece that will have a lasting mandate to make sure that food is not a problem anymore, but food will be the solution.

BLITZER: So if the incoming administration, Jose, if the Biden administration were to ask you, for example, to be that foods czar, would you be interested in taking that position.

ANDRES: I am a man that done better with boots on the ground and hurricanes empires. But it's very, very good people. We saw Beto O'Rourke, that wrote a great piece on Time Magazine giving very clear guidance as to what's happening and things we can do. I written op-eds in the New York Times Washington Post is plenty of good smart people but his moments to be bold. If we have food stamps, what we know is not. Let's make sure we increase, let's stop the lines in the food bank. And let's make sure people can use his not in local diners, in local coffee shops, a local farmers market, let's make sure that every dollar that goes to help feed Americans in the process. We help those low income neighborhood for the local business to benefit from the money coming from the federal government. We put business to work in the process. We fight hunger, we need new ideas like these. We can do it only we need the White House and Congress that are willing to do it.

BLITZER: And I know what you what you and your entire team are doing is so, so important. The World Central Kitchen does incredibly important work and you rely on contributions from people. I recommend it very, very highly. Chef Jose undress, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year. We'll stay in close touch with you. We appreciate everything you're doing. Thank you so much.

[17:55:00]

ANDRES: Merry Christmas to you.

BLITZER: Thank you very much.

Coming up, the President's golf -- president has been golfing today, sending more angry tweets about the election while coronavirus deaths are soaring out of control and the nation is wondering if he will veto billions of dollars in desperately needed really. We'll be right back.

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BLITZER: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world, I'm Wolf Blitzer. This is a Situation Room Special Report. On this Christmas Eve Americans are facing a new level of loss and uncertainty as the coronavirus crisis explodes and the outgoing president uses his final days in power to create chaos.