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Congress Certifies Biden Victory After Deadly Insurrection At U.S. Capitol; Source: Some Cabinet Members Holding Prelim Talks About Invoking 25th Amendment; Trump: "There Will Be An Orderly Transition" On January 20th; Four Dead After Trump Incites Attempted Coup At U.S. Capitol; Pro-Trump Mob Storms U.S. Capitol In Act Of Domestic Terror; Massive Breach Of U.S. Capitol Raises Questions About Security Failures; Giuliani Tries To Condemn Capitol Siege After Calling For "Trial by combat". Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired January 07, 2021 - 07:00   ET

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


[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. This is new day.

The insurrection failed, the coup failed, the weaponized attempt to block the election of Joe Biden failed. Donald Trump sent a mob to overrun the Capitol. These are the pictures. They were sent there to stop the moment we're about to show you. It failed.

Vice President Pence read aloud the results of the election, formalizing the count of the electoral vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Within that whole number, a majority is 270. The votes for president of the United States are as follows: Joseph R. Biden Jr. of the state of Delaware has received 306 votes.

The announcement of the state of the vote by the president of the senate shall be deemed a sufficient declaration of the person's elected president and vice president of the United States. Each for the term beginning on the 20th day of January, 2021.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

So even after the president sent the mob, the insurrectionists, to take over the Capitol, there were Republican members of congress who voted to overturn the results of the election. U.S. senators who voted to overturn the results of the election. Look at all of this?

Look at the results of those votes, those actions, and the president's words. And we should note that because of all of this, because of what the president said, because of what these people did, four people, four people are dead today after all of this.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Look at their faces, John. Look at the faces and the sounds and the actions of the people wearing the MAGA hats, of the people that the senators wanted to align themselves with. These are the Americans that they decided to align themselves with yesterday.

Moments after President-elect Biden's victory was certified by congress, President Trump appeared to concede defeat, pledging in a brief statement that, "There will be an orderly transition of power on January 20". But it's too late. Trump already incited thousands of his violent supporters to rise up and overthrow the election.

Inside sources tell CNN that during this deadly insurrection, the president was "borderline enthusiastic" about the attempted coup, and did not want to condemn his supporters. That's how sociopaths feel and think. That sad truth came into stark focus yesterday that President Trump is unfit and unwell. So can America endure 13 more days of the Trump presidency?

Sources tell CNN there are preliminary discussions among his own cabinet members about invoking the 25th Amendment to remove Trump from power. This morning, we are hearing the harrowing stories from lawmakers who were inside there, what they endured during this insurrection. And how did this massive security breach happen? Why wasn't the National Guard dispatched sooner?

We have reporters all over Washington covering every single angle. So let's begin with Lauren Fox. She is live on Capitol Hill and we know you were there, Lauren, for this yesterday.

LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Well, that's right, Alisyn. Look, after a very chaotic, a scary, a terrifying day on Capitol Hill. Lawmakers got back in the chamber last night. So I could tell you that after all of the votes cast last night, Joe Biden will be the next president of the United States.

Nothing about yesterday is going to change that fact and that was the message that lawmakers wanted to send. Look, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, Republicans, Democrats, they are frustrated, they are exasperated, they are tired of what President Trump has done. These are just a few of the members who spoke last night on the floor of both the house and the senate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): The best way we can show respect for the voters who were upset is by telling them the truth.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Trump and I, we've had a hell of a journey. I hate it being this way. Oh, my god, I hate it. All I can say is count me out. Enough is enough.

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): Look at the damage that was wrought in this house today, to this country today. Is that not enough?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOX: And lawmakers still had to vote on two state objections. There were seven Republican senators who voted to support the objection to the state of Pennsylvania. And I'm going to read them.

Senator Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley, Cynthia Lummis, Roger Marshall, Rick Scott, Tommy Tuberville, and Cindy Hyde-Smith, all of those lawmakers after the day they had yesterday on Capitol Hill, still voted to support overturning the election results in the state of Pennsylvania.

[07:05:00]

FOX: And look, Senator John Thune, the Majority Whip in the United States senate, he said last night as he was leaving, it was absolutely time for the Republican Party to move on from Donald Trump. He said, "We've got to get back to where the party is built around a set of ideals, principles, and policies. Alisyn?

CAMEROTA: Shame on them. Shame on those senators. They sided with domestic terrorists yesterday and we won't forget it. And I'm very glad that you read their names, Lauren. Thank you very much.

President Trump is now vowing an orderly transition of power on January 20th, when President-elect Joe Biden will be sworn in. But this is only after weeks of fueling and inciting the deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol and his damage is already done.

CNN's Joe Johns is live at the White House. What's happening, Joe?

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Alisyn. Well, the president certainly waited as long as possible before he put out this statement and he put it out right after the Electoral College vote up on Capitol Hill in the very early hours of the morning.

It was the closest thing the president has put out to a concession speech, but it wasn't a concession, it wasn't a speech, it was about two paragraphs long. It was on the Twitter account of Dan Scavino, who is his social media director.

Here is that statement. "Even though I totally disagree with the outcome of the election, and the facts bear me out, nevertheless there will be an orderly transition on January 20th. I've always said we would continue our fight to ensure that only legal votes were counted. While this represents the end of the greatest first term in a presidential history, it's only the beginning of our fight to make America great again."

Of course, one of the things you have to say is that this last 24 hours have been some of the worst 24 hours in the history of the American presidency, especially because the president essentially incited a riot upon Capitol Hill. And for that reason, a lot of people here in Washington, even in his own administration, are taking a good hard look at the 25th Amendment, which essentially allows the people in the cabinet to vote in order to turn the powers of the presidency over to the vice president.

Of course, it's never been used in history before. That, of course, is another reason why it might not happen. Others up on Capitol Hill have said they ought to take a second run at impeachment of the president, only this time remove him from office, even though they're only two weeks to go in this administration that very unlikely we are told.

Back to you.

BERMAN: You can see what happens in one day. We saw what happened in just one day yesterday. The question, the fair question is, can America stand 13 more days of this?

Four Americans are dead after what happened yesterday, after the mob that the president told to march over to the Capitol, after he told them to go over to the Capitol and then they did this.

This morning, we're learning new details about what happened, how this security breach happened, how these people got into the Capitol and into both chambers of congress.

CNN's Boris Sanchez live outside the Capitol with the very latest. Boris?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John. Capitol Hill has not seen this kind of violence in more than 200 years, since 1814 when the British basically broke through the doors entering Capitol Hill. Yesterday, it was Trump supporters defiling and dishonoring the largest monument, the largest symbol that we have to American democracy, egged on by the president's lies and incendiary rhetoric.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: Chaos unfolding on Capitol Hill as a pro-trump mob launched a deadly assault right at the heart of American democracy while lawmakers prepared to confirm President-elect Joe Biden's victory.

The rioters storming into the halls of congress, even breaking into legislative chambers. Police evacuating the house floor and Vice President Mike Pence, who was there for counting electoral votes. Armed authorities blocking the doors, while lawmakers and their staff went into lockdown.

REP. DAN KILDEE (D-MI): I was there on the floor in the gallery, literally laying on the floor behind a wall, as these people were storming into our chamber and it was frightening.

SANCHEZ: This attempted coup after thousands of President Trump supporters rallied near the White House Wednesday morning denying his election loss.

DONALD TRUMP JR., PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP'S SON: Stand up and fight! Stand up and hold your representatives accountable!

[07:10:00]

RUDY GIULIANI, PERSONAL ATTORNEY TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: If we're wrong, we will be made fools of. But if we're right, a lot of them will go to jail. So let's have trial by combat!

SANCHEZ: The president demanding Republican lawmakers and even Pence overturn his loss before giving this charge to supporters. DONALD TRUMP (D), PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We're going to the Capitol and we're going to try to give - the Democrats are hopeless. They're never voting for anything, not even one vote. But we're going to try to give our Republicans, the weak ones, because the strong ones don't need any of our help.

SANCHEZ: The mob following Trump's lead, climbing the walls of the Capitol, breaking down doors, shattering glass, and charging into the halls of congress, barreling past Capitol police. One rioter even carrying a confederate flag; another going into the empty senate chamber and declaring Trump won. This man posing for a photo after breaking into House Speaker Pelosi's office, along with an ominous message. Others, vandalizing her office.

(CROWD SHOUTING)

SANCHEZ: The insurrection leaving four people dead this morning, including one woman seen here carried on a stretcher, shot and killed inside the Capitol by police. Authorities arresting at least 52 people Wednesday and finding several weapons.

ROBERT CONTEE, CHIEF OF DC METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: Additionally, two pipe bombs have been recovered. One pipe bomb from the DNC, another pipe bomb from the RNC, a cooler from a vehicle with a long gun in it that also included Molotov cocktails. This also was on the grounds of the United States Capitol.

SANCHEZ: Biden calling on Trump to tell his supporters to back down.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is not dissent. It's disorder, it's chaos. It borders on sedition and it must end now. I call on this mob to pull back and allow the work of democracy to go forward.

SANCHEZ: Trump later posting this to Twitter, starting with lies about his election loss to Biden and ending with this message to his supporters.

D TRUMP: So, go home. We love you. You're very special.

SANCHEZ: Lawmakers returning to their debates, expressing defiance before ultimately voting to certify Biden's election.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY): We will not bow to lawlessness or intimidation. We are back at our posts. We will discharge our duty under the constitution.

SANCHEZ: Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer linking the attempted coup to Trump's actions.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): These were rioters and insurrectionists, goons and thugs, domestic terrorists. Today's events did not happen spontaneously. This mob was in good part. President Trump's doing, incited by his words, his lies. This violence in good part, his responsibility, his ever-lasting shame.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANCHEZ: And John, a much quieter scene as the sun rises on the nation's Capitol. There is a pretty large perimeter set up around Capitol Hill, a sizable National Guard presence as well as Capitol Hill police and local law enforcement as well.

I suspect that when there is a review of everything that happened yesterday, there is going to be a lot to answer for why there wasn't more law enforcement in place, why more preparations weren't made.

As you well know, the president had been egging on his supporters for weeks with false claims about the election being stolen from him on Twitter. This was an enormous crowd that was expected on hand yesterday, so why wasn't more done? And why does the president continue to instigate online, telling these terrorists that they're special and that he loves them? John?

BERMAN: Even this morning. Boris Sanchez, thanks so much for being there.

Joining us now, CNN political analyst, Maggie Haberman. She is a white house correspondent for "The New York Times"; CNN political analyst, David Gregory; also with us, CNN law enforcement analyst, Charles Ramsey, he is the former police chief in Washington, D.C.

In his statement this morning, President Trump continued to spread the lunatic, dangerous lies about the election. The lies that have incited the types of violence we saw, the insurrection at the Capitol yesterday. He told the mob to walk to the Capitol yesterday, so it raises a very serious question, is America safe for the next 13 days with him in office?

CNN's reporting is, there are discussions among some cabinet members about invoking the 25th Amendment.

"The Tulsa World" is reporting a conversation that Mike Pence had with Senator Jim Inhofe, where Inhofe says, "I've never seen Pence as angry as he was. I had a long conversation with him. He said, after all the things I've done for Trump". It would take vice presidential sign-off to invoke the 25th Amendment.

Maggie, we see resignations overnight from senior staff at the White House. What is going on there this morning?

[07:15:00]

MAGGIE HABERMAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It's what was going on yesterday. The president is in bunker mode. He is talking to extremely few people. Those who have talked to him have described the conversations as not productive, to put it mildly. He is absolutely convinced that he was wronged.

They had worked out this statement that he put out overnight, several hours before the vote was certified. They knew they were going to put this out, their plan was to put this out. And in this statement that the president put out, he says that he will - there will be an orderly transition of power, orderly transfer of power on January 20th.

But what people are concerned about are the days between now and then as you know. So there are these conversations among staff and among some people on Capitol Hill about the 25th Amendment.

To be clear, John, I don't think it will happen, but what it reflects is the concern about what could happen over the next 13 days, what the president could do. That statement, while it's important that he put it out, he is very capable and has in the past, undermined his own statements with tweets or other things he said. So we will see. Number one.

Number two, they're concerned about insurrections popping up around the country, especially because the president is so incredibly cued into his supporters. His Twitter feed is monitored for clues by his supporters about how to react and how to respond. The president, as we know, banned or at least said he is not welcomed back to the White House, of Marc Short, Pence's chief of staff, who he is blaming for the fact that Pence did not go along with the president's plan, or hope to subvert the Electoral College outcome in favor of Joe Biden.

That's where we are and we will see how many more resignations there are today, but I understand there are more coming.

CAMEROTA: Commissioner Ramsey, how concerned are you for the next 13 days?

CHARLES RAMSEY, FORMER WASHINGTON DC POLICE CHIEF: I'm very concerned. You saw yesterday a major, major security failure, and also a major failure of leadership as it relates to the U.S. Capitol police that are responsible for guarding the U.S. Capitol. Things are going to intensify, I think, over the next 13 days.

And of course, we have January 20th that we have to get passed. And the security there is going to be very heavy, very tight, but I'm very concerned. Yesterday should never have happened. They were totally unprepared to deal with the crowds.

CAMEROTA: And why was that, commissioner? Do you have any insight into - they knew that there were protesters. I guess they thought at the time they were protesters, but they knew that they could be ginned up and were being ginned up by the president and his enablers. And so this wasn't a secret that people were coming from around the country to the Capitol. How were they able to breach the Capitol building?

RAMSEY: There is no excuse for it, Alisyn. Absolutely no excuse at all. They should have had enough people on the Capitol grounds. The U.S. capitol police have about 2,000 police officers. They guard the building, the Capitol itself, as well as the house and senate office buildings. But they also have agreements in place where they can bring in the metropolitan police, they can bring in police agencies from Maryland and Virginia to help them.

Obviously, the National Guard - I mean, there were enough people that they could have brought in that they couldn't have prevented this from ever occurring. And if you remember now, in the Black Lives Matter march, you saw images of police officers on the steps of the Capitol, on several steps of the Capitol. There were a couple hundred of them that were around the Capitol. You didn't see any of that yesterday. And so, there is just no excuse for it.

The Intel was there. It was open source information that it was there. These right-wing groups that made it very clear that they were going to be there. Everything was in place. We always monitored the hotel reservations, short-term rental reservations, bus rentals to kind of get a sense of how many people are going to come to the district. All of that is there. How could you be possibly caught off guard? I don't get it.

BERMAN: It seems like a choice. Look, it's reasonable to ask whether it was a choice to treat these protesters, these Trump supporters differently than you treat Black Lives Matter protesters. People who were on the streets over the summer.

And David, as we sit here this morning, what strikes me as the immediate concern is the inspirational leader of the insurrectionists is sitting in the White House this morning. The person who inspired them to commit these acts still has an awful lot of power at his disposal. And there are members of the U.S. congress, six or seven senators, more than a hundred members of the U.S. house, who continue to use their political strength to support these ideas.

[07:20:00]

DAVID GREGORY, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, they and he, of course, have been engaged in this big lie that has contaminated the ground water of our political discourse, so that otherwise serious people are talking about the need to change election laws when this was a very successful election during a pandemic. The big lie.

And of course, this mob, they actually took the president literally. So what we've seen for four years are those who have enabled the president who have done this little dance to want to avoid him or not take him literally. We've seen the results yesterday. There is talk about the 25th Amendment.

I'm with Maggie, I think that that seems unrealistic. What we haven't seen heretofore is some kind of intervention from top Republican leaders who are willing to say to the president, point-blank, this has to stop. Even in the remaining days, there has to be a different tone. You are doing grave damage to the country. And I think last night was a reckoning for Republicans who took a hard look at what they've wrought by their silence.

And I have to say on this security question which is becoming a bigger story as we pull back from the horrible events of yesterday and nothing should overshadow the responsibility of those who actually stormed the Capitol. I mean, my goodness, after 9/11, it's possible to storm the Capitol and put - having some yahoo put his feet up on the house speaker's desk? What if they had been armed? We could have been looking at carnage yesterday. I'm shocked that that's the case.

And as you have pointed out, it bears repeating, the inconsistency, the horrible hypocrisy, if these had been Black Lives Matter protesters, imagine the police response we would have seen, imagine what the president of the United States would have said should have been done to those protesters storming the Capitol. This is what courses through society.

And what about other public buildings? We've seen this kind of behavior in Michigan. There is political violence and there are people who are taking the president literally.

CAMEROTA: And by the way, they were armed. I mean, not all of them, but police did--

GREGORY: Right, but just imagine if they had come in--

CAMEROTA: Of course. I totally agree, David. I actually don't even want to let my imagination go down that road of what kind of mass casualty event this would have been.

GREGORY: But that's what law enforcement is supposed to be doing, is to imagine, right. And that's the failure.

CAMEROTA: Maggie, Rudy Giuliani this morning is trying to distance himself, trying to say, I condemn violence. He put out a tweet with that BS after he is the person, who yesterday joined with Don Junior and Congressman Mo Brooks and the president. And said, "Let's have trial by combat". He did it.

He thinks we can't remember from yesterday? He thinks that today he'll be forgiven? It's so crazy, Maggie.

HABERMAN: So there's one thing I just want to point out in terms of what David just said and I'll get back to Rudy Giuliani in a second about there has to be an intervention. There's no question that Republicans have been silent and sort of averting their gaze for years and hoping that what the president could risk doing wouldn't happen and then it did happen yesterday.

I don't know who is capable of performing that intervention, when you have a president blocking the chief of staff to the vice president from the White House complex because you're angry that the vote was certified not in your favor, so that's one thing to put that aside.

In terms of Giuliani, I want to point out, that in 1992, Rudy Giuliani helped lead a riot of New York City police on New York City hall, which at the time was led by Mayor David Dinkins, the one and only black mayor of the city. And Giuliani helped whip up the crowd, he has long experience at this. He issued a statement yesterday while the violence was going on and while people were trying to get this to calm down, saying you are on the right side of the law, on the right side of the history, but be peaceful. These are winks and nods, and this is exactly what the president has done over and over again.

And as I said, these supporters of his look for clues on the Twitter feeds of him, of some of his allies, and now Giuliani, as you know, I think it's 20 hours after he spoke at that rally, where he talked about trial by combat is trying to suggest this was terrible. But even then, he and a lot of Republicans are wrapping it in. There should have been more criticism of what happened last year in Portland and of other unrest that took over and vandalizing and riots and looting and fine. But if that bothered you, then why do you even need to bring that in. Just condemn this.

CAMEROTA: Guys, stick around. We have many more questions for you.

As we report on the aftermath of what we saw yesterday, this armed insurrection inside the U.S. Capitol. And just hours ago, Joe Biden officially becoming, finally, president-elect.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:25:00]

CAMEROTA: OK. Back with us, we have Maggie Haberman, David Gregory and Charles Ramsey.

David Gregory, even after the armed insurrection, even after the violence inside the Capitol, these six senators still got up and tried to contest the election results and did their (inaudible) their obstruction.

And so these were seven of them, Senator Ted Cruz, Senator Josh Hawley, Cynthia Lummis, Senator Roger Marshall, Florida Senator Rick Scott, Alabama new senator Tommy Tuberville, Mississippi Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith, even afterwards, and Josh Hawley was sent out of fund raiser, a fund-raising email during it.

So they sided with that marauding mob of domestic terrorists. Look at him, arm raised, Josh Hawley. That's who they decided - when you look at the faces of the people who went into the Capitol, that's who he stood with yesterday. And I'm just not sure where they go from here.

GREGORY: Well, I hope they're ostracized within the party. They made a choice, which was to side with this insurrection and with this mob and with this president and with this big lie.