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The Situation Room
Interview With Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY); Acting Homeland Security Secretary Resigns; Democrats Introduce Article Of Impeachment Against Trump; FBI Warns Armed Protests Planned At U.S. Capitol And All 50 State Capitols Ahead Of Inauguration; D.C. Attorney General Says, Looking At Charging Trump, Others For Inciting Violence; CNN: WH Counsel, Barr Warned Trump Not To Self-Pardon; U.S. COVID Death Toll Tops 375,000 With 22.5 Million Cases As Country Struggles With Vaccine Distribution. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired January 11, 2021 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: A new warning that the deadly Capitol riot could potentially be repeated at multiple locations around the United States.
[18:00:03]
The FBI now says it has information indicating armed protests are being planned at the U.S. Capitol, as well as all 50 state capitols between this Saturday and the following Wednesday, which is Inauguration Day in the U.S.
Tonight, two Capitol Police have been suspended and another individual arrested for their alleged roles, get this, in the pro-Trump insurrection. We are told 10 to 15 Capitol Police officers are under investigation for their behavior during the riot.
Also breaking, acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf is joining the growing list of administration officials resigning in the aftermath of the attack, all this unfolding as House Democrats have set a historic vote for this Wednesday on impeaching President Trump for a second time.
They formally introduced one article of impeachment, charging the president with inciting the Capitol insurrection.
Let's start coverage this hour with CNN's Brian Todd, with more on the threat of new violence and the investigation of the Capitol riot.
Brian, this is oh so disturbing, what's going on in our country. What are you learning?
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is, Wolf.
And we will get to that moment. We just want to update everyone on the arrests and suspensions of the Capitol Hill officers. This is according to Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan, who is chairing a subcommittee dealing with the investigation into the riots. He says two Capitol Hill police officers have been suspended, one individual has been arrested for their alleged roles in the riot. Ryan says that 10 to 15 Capitol Hill police officers are under
investigation for their roles in the disturbance. This does as we get some disturbing new information on possible threats ahead of Inauguration Day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (voice-over): Tonight, a key focus among federal and local law enforcement agencies, preventing a repeat of Wednesday's deadly siege of the U.S. Capitol.
According to an FBI bulletin obtained by CNN, armed protests are being planned in Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitols this weekend through Inauguration Day. Officials monitoring online chatter in social media.
JAMES GAGLIANO, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: They're obviously looking at open source things. They are going through in following up in some of these chat rooms and some of these places where extremists tend to coalesce in the dark corners of the Web.
TODD: D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, concerned about more violent actors coming to Washington in the run-up to the inauguration, is urging people not to come into the city on Inauguration Day.
MURIEL BOWSER (D), MAYOR OF WASHINGTON, D.C.: Our goals right now are to encourage Americans to participate virtually and to protect the District of Columbia from a repeat of the violent insurrection experienced at the Capitol.
TODD: The Pentagon is bolstering the National Guard's presence in the nation's capitol, with as many as 15,000 Guardsmen to be deployed by Inauguration Day.
Meanwhile, the dragnet for the perpetrators of Wednesday's siege intensifies. At least 20 people have been rounded up across the country and face federal charges. Some are accused of bringing bombs and other weapons to Capitol Hill.
Two men were arrested after photographs showed them wearing body armor and carrying plastic restraining ties inside the Capitol. One man is accused of writing in text messages that he wanted to shoot House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, that he brought guns and ammunition.
One analyst says law enforcement is using sophisticated tools to track down many more suspects.
GAGLIANO: All of the cell phone records, all of the electronic exhaust that that's given off by our cell phones crossing bridges and our and our E-ZPass and license plate readers, and then matching that up with available online information, as well as conducting interviews of these people's friends and circles.
TODD: And new fallout tonight over the breakdowns that led to the overrunning of the Capitol. Now former Capitol Hill Police Chief Steven Sund, who resigned last week, tells CNN and "The Washington Post" he was concerned about what was coming in the days before the siege.
Sund says he asked his bosses, the House and Senate sergeants at arms, for permission to request that the National Guard be on close standby. Sund says they turned him down, concerned about the optics.
Sund said that, when the rioting was under way, he pleaded five more times for help, including to the Pentagon for National Guardsmen to be deployed -- quote -- "I needed boots on the ground, immediate assistance right then and there, helping to form police lines to help secure up the foundation of the United States Capitol Building. They were more concerned with the optics."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD: Now, the Army general who was on that call strongly denies Sund's claims, telling CNN that he discussed the need to get a plan approved and that a request for extra National Guard troops was quickly taken to the defense secretary.
[18:05:00]
We also reached out to that House and Senate sergeants at arms for a response to Sund's claims. They have not gotten back to us -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right, Brian, thank you very much, Brian Todd reporting.
Now the race toward impeachment. Our congressional correspondent, Phil Mattingly, who's joining us.
Phil, I understand you're learning new details on how quickly an impeachment trial, assuming the impeachment resolution passes the House -- and we assume it will overwhelmingly -- the trial could actually begin in the Senate. What are you learning?
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's what Senate Democrats are attempting to navigate right now, Wolf.
You said it. Right now, there's no question that House Democrats have the votes and fully plan on voting to impeach President Trump on Wednesday. The big question, will any Republicans join them? But that leads to the questions of what happens next.
Wolf, as things are currently set up, the United States Senate is not going to come back to Washington until January 19. That would be the earliest they could receive the article of impeachment from the House, which would tee up a trial that would start January 20.
That's Inauguration Day. And that has raised concerns from Democrats about what it would do to President -- then -- now President Joe Biden's agenda, what it would do to his nominees because of that.
Senate Democrats right now, Chuck Schumer, the soon-to-be-majority leader, is looking into the possibility of tapping into a 2004 precedent, where the leaders, just the leaders, not the entirety of the Senate, were able to agree to come back on an emergency basis, bring the Senate back into session. That wouldn't require unanimous consent.
It wouldn't require all 100 senators to agree, and, therefore, they could start the trial before January 19. Now, crucial caveat here, Wolf, Senate Majority Leader, current Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, would have to sign off on that. And at this point in time, we don't know where he stands.
One thing to keep in mind, the reason the Senate wouldn't come back before January 19 is not necessarily because McConnell. It's because, again, every senator would have to agree to it. And there are a number of Republicans who have made very clear they want no part of impeachment, they oppose impeachment.
But it all underscores right now, as these dynamics are playing out, we're in an unprecedented moment, a president about to be impeached for a second time, a president about to face a Senate trial potentially after he leaves office.
Lawyers both inside and outside Capitol Hill trying to figure out the dynamics of everything. And these are the options that they're trying to work through as we speak, Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes, with only nine days left in the Trump presidency, all this unfolding. Phil Mattingly up on Capitol Hill, thanks very much.
Let's go to the White House right now, the latest administration official to simply walk out and call it quits, again, with only nine days left.
Our chief White House correspondent, Jim Acosta, is getting new information.
Jim, I take it the acting homeland security secretary, Chad Wolf, he's heading for the exit. But what are we learning? What are his reasoning -- his reasons?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, that is right.
The acting homeland security secretary, Chad Wolf, is stepping down. He refers to recent events in a letter to employees of the department as to why he is stepping down. We're trying to get more information about that. He could be alluding to the siege of the Capitol last week.
There were also questions about the legality of his being the acting homeland security secretary. But putting that to the side, Wolf, keep in mind, that means that department will have yet another acting secretary at a time when concerns are building about domestic terrorism here in the U.S. and particularly at the nation's Capitol.
Meanwhile, President Trump remains in hiding. He is behind closed doors. With his Twitter account frozen, the president has been silent about the insurrection he incited last week, but a source close to the White House says Trump has shown -- quote -- "no remorse for the storming of the Capitol." As this source put it, Trump is still bitter about losing the election, fueling fears that he could lash out again and put the country in further danger.
Meanwhile, as for the vice president, a source close to the vice president says at this point he's just trying to make sure the rest of the world knows the U.S. has a functioning government.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): Nearly one week after he incited an insurrection Capitol Hill, President Trump is offering no apologies. A source close to the White House says Trump feels -- quote -- "no remorse."
He is still bitter that he's losing his grip on power, even after the confirmed deaths of Capitol Police officers and his own supporters that followed his incendiary remarks last Wednesday.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Because you will never take back our country with weakness. You have to show strength and you have to be strong.
ACOSTA: Vice President Mike Pence arrived at the White House for a Coronavirus Task Force meeting. Sources close to Pence say he's not taking the 25th Amendment off the table, but there are worries an attempt to remove the president from power would be a risk and might provoke Trump.
One source said: "The U.S. needs to telegraph to our allies and adversaries that we have a fully functioning government."
That's not what some House Democrats were hoping, as they're pressuring Pence to force Trump out of office.
REP. DAN KILDEE (D-MI): You know, it's hard to say. Mike Pence, like many of us, were targets of this mob. And I have to hold out the hope that he understands that he was left out in the cold by Donald Trump in a dangerous situation.
ACOSTA: Republicans are hopeful Democrats don't rush through a second impeachment of the president, with some in the GOP claiming Trump has learned his lesson, despite such predictions being wrong in the past.
SEN. ROY BLUNT (R-MO): The president should be very careful over the next 10 days that his behavior is what you would expect from the leader of the greatest country in the world.
[18:10:05]
Now, my personal view is that the president touched the hot stove on Wednesday and is unlikely to touch it again.
ACOSTA: Members of Congress fear Trump extremists will mount another assault on the Capitol after some of the president's supporters harassed both Democrats...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Who are you? Who are you? I'm me.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I'm me too.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Nobody here voted for you. We don't want you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's OK.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's OK.
ACOSTA: ... and Republicans after the siege on January 6.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lindsey Graham, you are a shame to the country! You know it was rigged! It's going to be like this forever wherever you go for the rest of your life.
ACOSTA: With the president isolated and cut off from his Twitter account, aides fear what Trump will do next, White House counsel Pat Cipollone and former Attorney General Bill Barr are warning Trump not to pardon himself. Federal prosecutors are not ruling out the president as a target in their insurrection probe.
MICHAEL SHERWIN, ACTING U.S. ATTORNEY FOR DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: Hundreds fled without being stopped. So, of course, it makes our job difficult. That's why we have to reengineer what happened through cell site data, social media postings, witness statements, cameras, video camera footage. So, this is a process that's going to take a while.
ACOSTA: That investigation could also mean even more legal troubles for Trump's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, who was inciting the president's supporters as well.
RUDY GIULIANI, ATTORNEY FOR PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: If we're wrong, we will be made fools of. But if we're right, a lot of them will go to jail.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
GIULIANI: So, let's have trial by combat.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: Aides to the president say he wants to spend part of this week touting what he sees as his accomplishments, including a trip to the border tomorrow to talk about the wall, the same wall taxpayers funded, instead of Mexico, as he promised.
And, Wolf, we had heard some talk earlier today that the president might put out some kind of video this evening talking about what he sees as his accomplishments over here at the White House as he closes out his time in office.
But one thing that we're hearing from White House officials is that they're a bit dumbfounded as to how to get the president's messages out to the American people. They have been using these Web videos in recent days, but they obviously can't do that so well with the president's social media accounts handicapped at the moment.
In the meantime, Wolf, the president could walk into the Briefing Room, take questions from reporters, but he seems to be in no mood to do that -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes, there's a White House press pool with a lot of video cameras there. If he had the guts, he could go out and just speak to the American public, say whatever he wanted. Reporters would then ask him questions and see if he wants to answer those questions.
That's normally what a president of the United States would do. But, clearly, he doesn't want to do that, right?
ACOSTA: We're not in a normal world right now, Wolf, no. The president has been in hiding for weeks. He does not want to take those questions.
He knows what questions we're going to ask. We're going to ask him about inciting that mob, inciting that insurrection last week. He doesn't want to talk about that, Wolf.
BLITZER: He certainly doesn't.
All right, thanks very much, Jim Acosta, at the White House for us.
Let's discuss with our senior political commentator, David Axelrod, another senior commentator, John Kasich, and our senior legal and national security analyst Carrie Cordero.
David, let's begin with this very serious new warning. CNN is learning from this internal FBI bulletin that armed protests are not only being planned here in the nation's Capitol around the inauguration, but in all 50 states next week, in the coming days.
How should the incoming Biden administration -- and you know a lot of these individuals -- how should they be approaching these threats, which also include direct threats to the president-elect, the vice president-elect, and the speaker?
DAVID AXELROD, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: You know, Wolf, I'm having flashbacks to 2009, when the Obama administration was about to take office, and we got word in the final days before the inauguration about a terrorist plot, a potential terrorist plot on the inauguration.
And this occasion, me writing a piece for the president in case he had to disperse the crowd in the middle of the ceremony and so on, it was very, very serious. And it was very sobering.
The difference is that we were working hand in glove with all of the officials of the Bush administration to try and contain the situation. I don't know what the level of cooperation is right now. It's kind of shocking to me that the DHS acting secretary should leave in the midst of this.
He apparently cited a court ruling that said he might not be acting under legal authority in that position, except he was off in Europe last week, when all this was happening, taking a victory tour or a goodbye tour. So, I don't know why he's leaving now.
But it's very, very serious. And the scope of it confirms what we have learned since last Wednesday, which is that this was no kind of haphazard event. This had been planned on the Internet, on social media.
[18:15:08]
And, apparently, the same folks who were behind that are trying to -- trying to stir up something even larger and more menacing in the coming days.
BLITZER: You know, John Kasich, what do you want to hear from your fellow Republicans to help de-escalate this awful situation right now to try to encourage a peaceful transition of power?
JOHN KASICH, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, we have had some that have spoken out, Wolf.
And we're glad that they're jumping in the water. I mean, some of us have jumped in the water five years ago. And we need them to be out there earnestly talking to people about settling this down.
One thing I will say is, for those who have now come on board, we're glad about that. But we shouldn't start giving up medals to people who jumped off the ship right before it hit the rocks, but, nevertheless, bring your people along.
I just heard this news sitting in my office getting ready for this interview, this report of Capitol Police officers who may have been involved, this report of armed protests in capitols across the country. I just called a friend of mine in law enforcement to say, you better get ready, because it's going to take greatly enhanced security to hold this off.
I remember, we were opening a Holocaust memorial that I had searched here for the state of Ohio in our state capitol. And I was warned about it. We had a massive amount of security, had to move the venue. But, nevertheless, if you can have enhanced security, it can really help.
But, Wolf, it's not often I would come on television and say that I'm flabbergasted. I am really, really concerned about this, because there are people who we have known who are normal people who have now adopted these conspiracy theories. And it's like there's no limit to the things they think and the things they say.
Everybody in this country needs to reach out to somebody who you think might be caught up in this and to beg them to not harm people. We just saw a police officer killed down there in that riot. Five people died. People, we need -- we need we all need to reach out to somebody who we think may be caught in these conspiracy theories, and not just Republicans.
All of us have to, to speak to them calmly. And we have got to get them to back off, because this is just -- it's unimaginable. This is like something out of a movie, Wolf, to see this. And it's on everybody to try to help everybody to calm themselves down and put the country first and their neighbor first.
I just am stunned. And, frankly, Wolf, I have said it before. I'm going to say it again. We all need to pray a little bit for peace in America, because we will get through this. But we're not going to do it if we don't reach out and be able to get these people to see the truth.
BLITZER: Yes, you know, these next nine days, with Trump in office, could be very, very dangerous, not only here in Washington, but around the country as well.
Evan Perez, our justice correspondent, has got some new information those two Capitol Hill police officers who have been suspended.
I take it, what, 10 or 15 others are under investigation right now? What are you learning?
EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf.
There is a number of officers, people who are firefighters, members of the military who are under close scrutiny as part of this investigation. And I will tell you, this is a top priority for the investigators. If you think about this, to sort of just jump off of what the governor was just talking about, I think we're looking at a situation where people have been radicalized.
You are talking about there is a certain amount of radicalization that has happened as a result of Trumpism, as well as some of these other -- these other ideologies that have been floating around on the Internet, the QAnon, as well as some of the white supremacist stuff.
And it's all become like a smoking cauldron. And it has infected members of law enforcement, people in positions of trust. And that's what is underscored here by the news out of the Capitol. This is information that the FBI gave to members of Congress today, saying that there were two officers.
There was enough information certainly for the two officers, one of them who was seen taking a selfie, another one who was -- put on a MAGA hat and was seen directing people around the building. That is a very scary situation.
And so I'm told, Wolf, that this is a priority for the investigators, because they need to understand whether there was any inside help for this mob, for the people who came in to try to ransack. Was there any communication? Was there anything that helped coordinate what happened?
[18:20:10]
Clearly, law enforcement was taken by surprise. And so the question is, was there someone who was helping to make this happen? And they're going to get to the bottom of it. But, again, it's a top priority to try to get to the bottom of this.
BLITZER: Yes, this angry pro-Trump mob, they illegally entered Capitol -- the U.S. Capitol, broke the law in the process, and everyone knows that.
Carrie, all this news is unfolding as we're learning, what, that the acting homeland security secretary, Chad Wolf, all of a sudden, with nine days left, has issued a letter of resignation? Is the federal government really prepared to respond to these looming coordinated attacks on our democracy?
CARRIE CORDERO, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, with respect to Chad Wolf's resignation from the acting secretary position, I think there's an argument to be made that there might actually be more confidence in the Department of Homeland Security's response over the course of the next week leading up to the inauguration with him out of that position.
The FEMA director, Pete Gaynor, will become the lawfully appointed acting secretary of the department. And the most important thing is that there is a person who is not perceived as so political as Chad Wolf was, who overtly politicized that department to such an extent that it provides a lack of confidence.
So, what's important is that it be clear who is the new acting secretary. I expect it to be Pete Gaynor, the FEMA director, I would think. He should be the next one in line, as a Senate-confirmed individual.
And then what we really need to hear, because this security situation is really so important over the course of the next week leading to the inauguration, we need to hear from the most senior law enforcement officials in the country, with some -- speaking with some confidence that they are addressing the situation in a coordinated way.
So, I think it would be helpful for us to hear from the FBI director, the new appointed acting secretary of homeland security, so that there is some presence of leadership, because we are just right now, because there has been no significant press conference of federal law enforcement officials, despite the fact that there was basically a domestic terrorism attack on the Capitol, we need to hear from them, so that the public has some confidence that the country is going to be safe over the course of the next week.
BLITZER: We certainly do. The American public has a right to know what's going on.
Guys, stand by.
I want to bring in the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries of New York, who's joining us.
Congressman, thanks so much for joining us. These are crazy times here in Washington, very dangerous times as well.
And as you have heard us report now, it's really pretty significant, the acting homeland security secretary, Chad Wolf, out. He has just resigned amid this wide range of new threats outlined in this internal FBI bulletin that CNN has obtained.
How concerned are you that we, God forbid, potentially could see a repeat of last week heading into the inauguration?
REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): Good evening, Wolf.
I'm very concerned not just that we can expect continuing attacks by those who have been incited by Donald Trump and his enablers and sycophants. But I'm also concerned by the fact that so many Cabinet secretaries are taking the easy way out.
They are resigning, as opposed to getting together with Mike Pence, and invoking the 25th Amendment, so we can deal with the current occupant of 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, who is a clear and present danger to the safety, health and well-being of the American people for as long as he remains in office.
BLITZER: Two Capitol Police officers -- and you deal with them on a daily basis up on Capitol Hill -- two of them have now been suspended.
And we're told 10 to 15 are under investigation for their response during that violent mob attack on the U.S. Capitol last week. How does it feel, Congressman hearing that, knowing that your life, the lives of your colleagues, your staff, they were obviously clearly at risk?
How do you -- how does that make you feel when you hear that these Capitol Police officers are now at least being investigated for cooperating with this mob?
JEFFRIES: Well, overall, let me be clear. The vast majority of the Capitol Police officers were incredibly brave. Many were battling for hours, engaging in hand-to-hand combat, to defend the Capitol, defend the staff, defend the members, defend the institution.
[18:25:08]
They will, underprepared and under-resourced. That's why the head of the Capitol Police has resigned. That's why the sergeant at arms in both the House and the Senate has resigned. We're going to have a full and complete investigation and deep dive.
Any officers that may have been complicit, of course, should be held accountable. But I do want to acknowledge the bravery of the vast majority of Capitol Hill police officers. This was an attack that was violent in nature on the Capitol, the Congress, the country, and the Constitution.
Walls were breached and scaled. Violence was used. Officers were beaten. One was killed. Weapons were deployed. Mace and bear spray were utilized. Offices were ransacked. Feces and urine was left behind. The Confederate Flag was bandied about.
And someone even decided to take down an American flag and put in its place a Trump flag. This was as serious as it gets, in terms of a violent violation of all that we stand for as Americans.
And that's why, Wolf, we are acting with the fierce urgency of now. And we're proceeding to holding this president accountable by every tool available to us, including making sure that we impeach him for inciting a violent insurrection.
BLITZER: Yes. And I totally agree.
Having covered Congress for a long time, these Capitol Police officers are excellent. And there are a few bad ones, clearly, that are now under investigation. But the vast, vast majority do an incredible job. And so many of them risked their own lives the other day in protecting you and your colleagues and your staff.
And they deserve a lot of credit for that. And what was going on -- you mentioned this, and I have heard it from so many of your colleagues -- some of these individuals, whether they were neo-Nazis, whether they were racists, they were walking around the U.S. Capitol in really sensitive areas urinating.
It was just disgusting, what they were doing to our nation at a moment like this. And there's video, there are pictures of these individuals doing those kinds of things in the United States Capitol. It is so, so disgusting.
One quick question before I let you go, Congressman. How worried are you about this internal FBI bulletin that CNN has obtained that says there are now, in the words of the FBI, they're tracking various threats to harm president-elect Biden ahead of the presidential inauguration, and there are threats against vice president-elect Kamala Harris and the speaker, Nancy Pelosi?
How concerned should we be about these direct threats to the physical safety of the incoming president and vice president and the speaker?
JEFFRIES: We should be extremely concerned. There were people who were in that Capitol Building who breached the Congress who were there to assassinate Nancy Pelosi, make no mistake about it.
They were there to hang Vice President Mike Pence. They were there to hunt down members of the United States House of Representatives and senators, because the president unleashed them with a big lie that this election had been stolen from him and that the presidency didn't belong to Joe Biden and the vice presidency to Kamala Harris.
And many of my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle perpetrated and facilitated that lie.
I'm hopeful -- and we're getting ready to have a security briefing in a few minutes -- that all available law enforcement entities are all hands on deck with respect to the protection of incoming President Joe Biden, the vice president, the speaker, the Senate majority leader, every member of Congress, the staff that's there, and protecting the health and safety and well-being of the American people.
We cannot allow these domestic terrorists and these enemy combatants to win. That's why we went back to the Capitol on January 6 to complete our work and certify the election of Joe Biden.
That's why we will be there on January 20 to ensure the peaceful transfer of power, but we are going to have to deal with these violent white supremacist entities in the most decisive way possible moving forward.
BLITZER: Yes, I drove around Capitol Hill today in my car just to see what was going on, not just the fencing and the barriers that have been built up, but the military personnel who have been deployed to protect the U.S. Capitol.
And there are now reports that maybe as many as 15,000 National Guard troops are on the way to Washington to help protect all of you and everybody else in the days leading up to the inauguration.
Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, be careful up there. Thanks so much for joining us. Thanks for everything you're doing.
JEFFRIES: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Just ahead: an outdoor inauguration amid growing threats of armed protests. President-elect Biden's now weighing in on that.
[18:30:03]
And we'll also talk about this disturbing new FBI bulleting with the Bureau's former deputy director, Andrew McCabe.
Lots going on, we'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: We are following a lot of breaking news this hour. The FBI now warning of armed protests planned at the U.S. Capitol and in all 50 state capitols around inauguration day. And House Democrats are set a Wednesday vote on impeaching President Trump for inciting last week's deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
Let's get reaction from the Biden transition. Our Political Correspondent, Arlette Saenz, is covering the president-elect for us.
Arlette, is Biden concerned that his ability to get things done might be impacted by a potential Trump impeachment trial in the Senate?
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, President- elect Biden wants to make sure that the early days of his administration are not bogged down by this impeachment trial. And what he is hoping for is to find a way that they can operate on dual tracks for a Senate impeachment trial to take place but also for his agenda and nominees to be considered and move forward.
Take a listen to what Biden had to say a little bit earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT: Half day dealing with impeachment, the other half day getting my people nominated and confirmed in the Senate as well as moving on. That's my hope and expectation.
REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE)?
BIDEN: I don't know. I haven't gotten an answer from the attorney yet.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SAENZ: So, the president-elect said he is still waiting to hear whether that will be possible as he is hoping that his agenda can move forward in these opening weeks of his administration.
[18:35:08]
BLITZER: All right, Arlette, thank you very much, Arlette Saenz in Wilmington.
Let's bring in the former acting FBI director, Andrew McCabe, he is a CNN Contributor. Andrew, thanks so much for joining us.
How disturbing are these details that have just emerged in this internal FBI bulletin that CNN has obtained?
ANDREW MCCABE, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I'll tell you, Wolf. It is remarkable. I don't think in the entire scope of my career, working counterterrorism issues for many, many years, I don't think I ever saw a bulletin go out that concerned armed protest activity in 50 states over a three or four-day period. That is a very broad, very serious concern that the FBI is bringing to people's attention.
BLITZER: How worried should we be? The bulletin also speaks about threats that they have learned, various threats to harm President- elect Biden ahead of the presidential inauguration as well as threats against the vice president-elect and the speaker. How worried should we be about that?
MCCABE: Those threats are serious but they're also fairly common particularly around inaugurations. And you're talking about people that are extraordinarily well protected by the Secret Service and by Capitol police. And so I would never say don't take it seriously, it is certainly very serious, but I think that the right precautions are probably in place to protect certainly the president and vice president-elect.
I would be very concerned about the protest activity that is really much more diffuse and really at the mercy of state governments and how they are prepared to turn that back.
BLITZER: Because you're right, and I read this internal FBI memo. Armed protests, I'm quoting now, armed protests are being planned at all 50 state capitols from 16 January through at least 20 January, and at the U.S. Capitol from 17 January through 20 January.
I don't remember ever seeing an FBI bulletin like that. You worked at the FBI. You were acting FBI director, and you say you don't remember anything like that either.
MCCABE: No, never, Wolf. And I ran the counterterrorism division for a few years, never saw anything like this. And I can tell you that the analysts that put these together are consummate professionals. They don't gravitate towards hyperbole and exaggeration. They are saying this because they have intelligence that indicates this level of threat activity and that is very concerning.
BLITZER: These are not Al Qaeda threats. These are not foreign terrorist threats. These are domestic terrorism threats, which is a very, very awful situation in our country right now.
Andrew McCabe, thank you so much for joining us.
MCCABE: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: Just ahead, Washington, D.C.'s attorney general is now looking at charges against President Trump for his role in the Capitol riot. I'll get reaction from the former U.S. attorney, Preet Bharara, who is standing by live.
And as the COVID-19 vaccine rollout in the United States continues to lag, the U.S. is averaging more deaths than we saw on 9/11 every single day.
We'll be right back.
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[18:40:00]
BLITZER: Breaking news out of the D.C. attorney general. He is looking at potentially charging President Trump and others for inciting violence during speeches given at that rally directly before rioters stormed the U.S. Capitol.
Let's discuss with a former U.S. attorney, CNN Senior Legal Analyst Preet Bharara.
Preet, could the president realistically face criminal charges?
PREET BHARARA, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: I mean, it's possible. He has done so many things in the last number of days, not to mention the last four years, that bear investigation and inquiry. And in the last week or two alone, we are talking about the phone call he made, putting pressure on and looking like he was threatening the secretary of state of Georgia, Brad Raffensperger, the things he said last week where it was foreseeable that there would be violence at the Capitol.
I heard remarks of the D.C. attorney general, and he did not say there would be charges or there was a slam dunk, that he is gathering facts. And I think responsible people, given what the consequences are, should be looking not only at the folks who engaged directly in violence at the Capitol, where five people were killed, but also with the other people who may have been responsible for causing that to happen.
So I don't know that there will ever be charges, but it's certainly appropriate and legitimate to look.
BLITZER: What about some of the president's key allies, let's say Rudy Giuliani, who at that rally just before the mob went up Pennsylvania Avenue and stormed Capitol Hill, Giuliani called for a trial by combat. What about that?
BHARARA: Look, that's incendiary language, whether it meets the threshold for a criminal case is unclear. There have been precedents that make clear there is a conflict between wanting to protect against violence and people's free speech rights. If the president or Giuliani were more explicit, I want you to go to the Capitol, I want you to break windows, I want you to take hostages, I want you to do all these things explicitly, it would be a clear case.
So I think you need to figure out what other things Rudy Giuliani was doing, what other things the president was doing, what he was saying. I think the reactions he had while the violence was taking place bears on his state of mind when he made the earlier statements. There was reporting that he seemed not only not be upset but to be kind of enjoying the fact that his people were doing these things. If those reports are correct, if you can get testimony to that effect, that improves the case. But I think it's difficult given the imprecise language that was used.
BLITZER: And CNN has learned that the president's former attorney general, William Barr, who resigned a couple of weeks ago, and the current White House counsel, Pat Cipollone, they specifically have now warned the president not to pardon himself before leaving office.
[18:45:13]
How will things play out if the president went ahead in any case and did so?
BHARARA: So as we talked about, the president of the United States could, you know, issue a piece of paper on which he says I am pardoning myself for presumably all crimes that may have been committed while I served as president. That has no force and effect, is not even necessarily right for adjudication until such time and someone in the Justice Department decides to bring a charge against Donald Trump. And if and when the charge was brought, presumably Donald Trump and his lawyers would stand up and say, we've got this piece of paper purports to be a self-pardon, and that's our defense, and the judge would figure that out.
It's interesting that the attorney general has made this comment. I think what will naturally happen in the next administration if it hasn't already, is we might get further guidance in the form of Office of Legal Counsel opinion within Justice Department, setting out at greater length the department's view and opinion of whether or not a self pardon is appropriate, which may have, you know, some weight, and carry some force, if a judge in the future has to deal with the situation I described.
BLITZER: There's a lot of speculation that he potentially over in the next nine days could issue a whole bunch of pardons. But what about specifically pardoning supporters who broke the law in that riot up on Capitol Hill.
Do you think that's at all realistic, he could pardon the individuals who have now been arrested?
BHARARA: I think he has the power to do so, there's some question people are having about whether or not crimes are local or federal, but in D.C., they're all prosecuted by the Justice Department. It is also the case and there's precedent for this that you don't have to pardon people specifically by name. That was true when folks who avoided the draft were pardoned for their draft dodging.
So, it's certainly a possibility and given what Donald Trump has said and done before and given how he feels about these folks, maybe he would issue such a pardon. I mean, I think given the pressure on him to step down, new potential impeachment, all of which relates to how he sort of egged these people on, inspired them, incited them, urged them on, it would seem to be a bad thing to go ahead and pardon them in advance of charges.
BLITZER: All right, Preet, thanks very much. A lot of legal issues --
BHARARA: Thanks, Wolf.
BLITZER: -- to help us better appreciate the situation right now.
Just ahead, we turn to another crisis facing our country, the raging coronavirus pandemic which is now averaging more than 3,000 deaths in the United States every single day.
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[18:52:27]
BLITZER: We're also following breaking news on the coronavirus pandemic. The U.S. death toll now tops 375,000 and vaccine distribution is far behind schedule across the country.
Here's CNN's Erica Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The city that never sleeps now offering coronavirus vaccines 24/7, expanding a list of who is now eligible with the goal of 175,000 additional shots in arms by the end of this week.
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D), NEW YORK: We feel very good about that goal. We feel very good about our goal to vaccinate a million people in the course of the month of January.
HILL: The first responders in Massachusetts rolling up their sleeves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't want to be super-spreaders.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Today is the first day I feel like we're fighting back.
HILL: Nationwide, about 35 percent of distributed vaccines, some 9 million doses have now been administered.
DR. JONATHAN REINER, PROFESSOR OF MEDICINE, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: We should be getting rid of the priority system. The priority system doesn't work here. We need to make the vaccine available for everyone.
HILL: President-elect Joe Biden getting his second dose as concern grows about the availability of that second shot if the Biden administration releases all available doses when he takes office.
DR. LEANA WEN, FORMER BALTIMORE HEALTH COMMISSIONER: If people cannot get that second dose in time, I don't know how I'm going to be able to convince my patients to even get the first dose.
DR. CELINE GOUNDER, BIDEN-HARRIS TRANSITION COVID-19 ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER: What we're really recommending is a change in how the supply is managed, not how the vaccine is administered, dosed and the dosing regimen.
HILL: While we wait, the virus is still surging, percent positivity topping 10 percent in 32 states. The goal has always been less than 5 percent. Only three states are at or below that benchmark.
GOV. PHIL MURPHY (D), NEW JERSEY: This is what we were afraid of, people letting their guard down over Christmas and New Year's and spreading the virus among their families and friends.
HILL: Hospitalizations have now topped 100,000 for 40 straight days. Among the states reaching record highs again, Texas and Arizona.
MONIQUE HORBACZEWSKI, HUSBAND HOSPITALIZED WITH COVID SINCE NOVEMBER: The ICU doctor told me that there is very little to hope and a lot that can go wrong.
HILL: The U.S. is now reporting an average of 3,200 COVID deaths a day. That's more than the number of lives lost on 9/11 every day.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL (on camera): Wolf, I'm in Brooklyn at one of two 24-hour vaccination sites that were just open for New York City, and we're told the midnight to 4:00 a.m. slots are fully booked. The mayor is feeling really good about that.
[18:55:01]
The governor, though, is concerned as to whether supply can actually keep pace with demand -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Erica Hill reporting, thank you very much.
And we'll have more news right after this.
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BLITZER: Finally, tonight, we share more stories of people who died from the coronavirus.
Jack Harding of Maryland was 74. He was a molecular biologist who had to retire from NIH. His wife Carol says he was also an accomplished watercolor artist and a loving husband, father and grandfather.
Donna Pierce of Texas was 64. She was a retired teacher and kept in touch with former students. Her son William says she loved camping and, of course, her family.
May they rest in peace and may their memories be a blessing.
"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.
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