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Washington And State Capitals Tighten Security; Biden To Sign Executive Orders On First Day; U.S. Bracing For Violence As FBI Warns Of Armed Protests; CDC Warns U.K. Variant Could Be Dominant Strain By March; California Opens Mass Vaccination Sites; Biden Promises 100 Million Vaccinations In First 100 Days; Biden Faces Renewed Nuclear Posturing From North Korea. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired January 17, 2021 - 03:00   ET

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

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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): In three days, the world will watch Joe Biden's inauguration. We'll show you how it will be a transfer of power unlike any other.

The new president wants to get right to business. We'll look at his plans to roll back some of Donald Trump's signature policies.

And the coronavirus pandemic hanging over all of it. California is the new epicenter, with a slower than expected vaccine rollout affecting care.

Live from CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, welcome to all of you watching here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber and this is CNN NEWSROOM.

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BRUNHUBER: Right now, Washington, D.C., and all 50 state capitals are hardening their defenses. They're bracing for large, possibly violent, armed protests leading up to Inauguration Day.

These images here aren't what you'd expect to see around the seat of America's government and it's not just around the U.S. Capitol building. Much of official Washington is sealed off in all directions by trucks, barricades, troops, armed security. The National Mall is closed.

Up to 25,000 National Guard troops are pouring into Washington from all over the country. Authorities say the immediate threat appears to be domestic extremists, upset by Donald Trump's election loss and emboldened by the deadly Capitol siege.

The FBI warns all 50 state capitals could be targets. Most of them have greatly enhanced their security. For his part, the president- elect has readied about a dozen executive actions as soon as he's sworn in. We'll have more on that in just a moment.

But we begin with CNN's Shimon Prokupecz on the scene right now in fortress Washington.

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SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE PRODUCER: Roadblocks like this, all across Washington, D.C., the National Guard, now patrolling almost every intersection across the district.

This is a checkpoint, one of the areas where, sometimes, cars will come through. The National Guard will ask for credentials, in order to come through. This is blocks from the Capitol.

The perimeter across the Capitol, across Washington, D.C., is wide. Every iconic structure, from the White House to all of the monuments, the National Mall, all fenced in. Everything around there has fences.

Authorities, here very concerned over the threat that the district faces and also, the threat that much of the country is facing -- Shimon Prokupecz, CNN, Washington.

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BRUNHUBER: As mentioned, Joe Biden plans to get right to work the moment he becomes president on Wednesday. CNN's Arlette Saenz has those details.

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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President-Elect Joe Biden is readying dozens of executive actions to sign, once he takes office on January 20th. Many of these executive actions he outlined during his presidential campaign.

And on the first day alone, he plans to sign roughly a dozen executive actions. Some of them undoing policies from the Trump administration. One of those executive actions he will sign will rescind the travel ban on travelers from majority Muslim countries. That is something that President Trump unveiled early on in his administration that Biden plans to undo.

The president-elect is also planning to rejoin the Paris climate agreement, something that was negotiated during the Obama-Biden years but President Trump pulled out of.

There are also some items relating to the pandemic. Biden will be halting foreclosures on evictions, something that is happening right now, as well as keeping that pause on payments for student loans and interest.

The president-elect will also be issuing what they are calling a 100- day masking challenge, trying to get people all across the country to wear masks. While Biden doesn't have the authority to mandate masks everywhere, he can do it in federal buildings and interstate travel.

These executive actions, rolled out over the coming weeks, are also joining his legislative priorities. He will be sending an immigration bill to Congress in his first 100 days and he is also unveiling a $1.9-trillion-dollar COVID stimulus relief package, something he is hoping that Congress can get to right away.

What the president-elect is making clear with these executive accidents is that he's looking to hit the ground running on January 20th --

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SAENZ: -- Arlette Saenz, CNN, Wilmington, Delaware.

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BRUNHUBER: When Donald Trump leaves office on Wednesday, he'll have just about the worst approval rating of any U.S. president after the first term since scientific polling began. Just 33 percent now approve of him; 60 percent disapprove of his job performance, according to a new Quinnipiac University poll.

He's also facing an unprecedented second impeachment trial, which will likely start after Joe Biden's inauguration. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is expected to set that process in motion next week.

As Trump enters the final days of his presidency, he's spending most of his time away from the public eye. CNN's Jeremy Diamond has that part of the story.

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JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Silence on social media and now becoming the only president in American history to be impeached not once but twice. President Trump spent his last weekend in office here at the White House, holed up inside the building behind closed doors with no public events listed on his schedule.

What we do know though, is President Trump was still meeting with some of his advisers; Rudy Giuliani, the president's personal attorney, who led the president's efforts to try and overturn the results of the 2020 election which he lost. He was spotted at the White House on Saturday.

That was just a day after Mike Lindell, the CEO of My Pillow, who has been spreading many of these conspiracy theories relating to the 2020 election, he was also meeting with the president at the White House Friday night, discussing many of these debunked allegations of voter fraud in the 2020 election.

And so as the president does that, what you are seeing is vice president Pence really beginning to fill a leadership void that the president has left in this final week in office.

While we haven't seen President Trump talk about the coronavirus pandemic, we haven't seen him really substantively address security around the inauguration; what you've seen vice president Mike Pence do is lead Coronavirus Task Force meetings.

On Saturday we saw the vice president touting the Trump administration's national security achievements, as he sees them, in a speech at a military base in California. And just a couple of days ago the vice president also calling Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris to congratulate her and offer his assistance as she steps into his role.

All of this would be traditional in any transition, peaceful transition, between administrations. But President Trump has avoided all of those niceties, all of those traditions, during this period of transition. No communication between him or President-Elect Joe Biden.

Of course, President Trump is not planning to attend Joe Biden's inauguration. Instead, sources are telling us that the president is expected to leave Washington on Wednesday morning before, just hours before that inauguration, to head to his Mar-a-lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida.

But the president has been asking aides for a last taste of the trappings of the presidency, asking for a huge military-style sendoff. It's not clear whether that will happen at the White House or at Joint Base Andrews before President Trump sets foot on Air Force One for the last time as president.

But that is what he is looking to do. He's also hoping to have a large crowd of supporters there to send him off in his final hours as president -- Jeremy Diamond, CNN, the White House.

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BRUNHUBER: I want to bring in Jessica White, an expert on terrorism and domestic extremism. She's with the U.K.'s Royal United Services Institute, the world's oldest defense think tank.

Thank you so much for coming on to speak with us. You wrote a piece at the end of November, called "Far-right extremism steals the show in 2020." Seems prescient to say the least.

What surprised you most by what you saw January 6th and what are you expecting to see across the country on January 20th?

JESSICA WHITE, RESEARCH FELLOW, ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE: Thank you for having me this morning. I think, you know, obviously that piece was written before the events of January 6th. And I can't say that I didn't expect something of that kind to happen.

I mean, unfortunate as it was. And I think we should expect to see more of the same kind of protests and potential violence. Obviously, everyone is gearing up for that.

I think, you know, long after the transition happens, there will be the need to sort of ratchet back, ratchet down the polarized nature of the political discussion in an effort to sort of -- to lessen the base of support for far-right extremism in the United States.

The trust needs to be rebuilt in the democratic process and the public conversation brought back to the discourse of moderate and collaborative politics. I think that will take some time. And I think we should be ready to deal with what might happen before that.

BRUNHUBER: I mean, who's the onus on there for that?

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BRUNHUBER: You know, there's -- I imagine only so much that President Biden can do.

Is it on Republicans to sort of dial back and maybe distance themselves from President Trump and his rhetoric?

WHITE: I think the onus is on everyone actually. I think it's on all politicians and it's on the public themselves as well. I think there is a need for everyone to sort of push out the extremist discussion, out of the mainstream political conversation.

In the last several years, there's been uptick in how much conspiracy theory and disinformation has made its way from social media into mainstream political and public conversations. So I think it's the onus of everybody, you know, from the president down to the public to make an effort to sort of push the extreme out of the mainstream.

BRUNHUBER: I mean, the growth of that extremism, it predated President Trump. But you know, it certainly took off and was emboldened during his administration.

Do you see that changing with a new president in the White House?

And how do you think that the new president will confront this?

Do you think authorities will be sort of better equipped to deal with right-wing extremism under a new administration, which might be less liable to undermine them?

WHITE: Yes, I mean, I think under the Biden administration, that he will put more attention and more focus on sort of the resources and the research that's needed to understand how to dial back the base that they have developed over the last several years.

Like you say, far-right extremism is not a new thing but it's been given a new voice. And especially with the polarization of U.S. politics and with the pandemic and the racial inequality movements in the last year and before that, these are all feeding an environment that makes it very easy for them to sort of grasp onto narratives that are running.

So I think, you know, there's certainly -- there needs to be resources put towards an engagement with national security organizations as well as state and local governments and civil society and how to handle this and to, you know, to sort of lessen its base of support. And I think that the Biden administration will put more attention to that, yes.

BRUNHUBER: You mentioned the movement towards racial equality. I'm wondering, many Republicans, certainly many in the right-wing media, have sort of tried to establish an equivalency between the growing violent extremism and Black Lives Matter, Antifa, things like that.

Are there -- is there any merit to that?

Or, you know, are they completely distinct and shouldn't be mentioned in the same breath?

WHITE: I think they are distinct. They have distinct ideologies, both of them. They have distinct purposes. Obviously violence is violence and that shouldn't be upheld by either side or any of the participants. But I think, you know, they are not the same thing.

BRUNHUBER: No, I don't mean the same thing; I just mean that are there similar social forces operating in the sense that growing inequality, frustration over the status quo, things like that.

WHITE: Yes, certainly. You know, I think they polarize each other. You know, one sort of is a circular process of where Black Lives Matter or similar far left, if you want to bring them into the conversation, far right, these are all going to feed off of each other's activities and narratives; although, you know, they have different purposes.

And I would say that there are legitimate grievances that need to be acknowledged and addressed in an open way, you know, while trying to reduce the sort of negativity that they feed off of from each other.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, so much work still to be done. Listen, thank you so much, Jessica White in London, appreciate you talking to us.

WHITE: Thank you.

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BRUNHUBER: California COVID infections surged to new heights but a massive vaccination campaign is bringing hope. How the state plans to get the most vulnerable vaccinated as soon as possible.

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BRUNHUBER: Researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have a warning: vaccinate the public more quickly or watch the more contagious U.K. COVID variant make the spread of the disease even worse.

So this is where things stand right now. Nearly 400,000 people dead, among close to 24 million cases worldwide. That CDC warning all the more stark now that we've learned that the U.S. government has no more reserve vaccine doses.

The Trump administration had promised to release them on Friday but, in fact, they've already been distributed. Now this news blindsided many state governors, who were making plans to administer those vaccines.

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GOV. TIM WALZ (D-MN): It is not debatable that the United States did this more poorly than any nation on Earth. They were lying. They don't have any doses held back.

GOV. KATE BROWN (D-OR): Let me very clear. This is deception on a national scale.

GOV. JARED POLIS (D-CO): What we really need is a new administration. We need President Biden and Secretary Becerra to restore some confidence and sanity to this to figure out what the hell is going on, and if they have extra doses, to get them out.

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BRUNHUBER: The CDC is predicting the U.K. variant could become the most dominant form of the virus here in the U.S. by March.

Los Angeles County has now reported its first case of that COVID variant from the U.K. It's also become the first U.S. county to report more than 1 million total COVID cases. California health officials are rolling out a massive vaccination campaign in an effort to stem the spread. CNN's Paul Vercammen has more.

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PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A ray of sunshine in Los Angeles on this unusually warm day. The mega testing site at Dodger Stadium is up and running and business is brisk.

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VERCAMMEN: You can see behind me the cars are snaking through these cones. And these are filled with people who are medical workers. That's the first wave here in Los Angeles.

The cars stop at some point and they get the shots in their arm, in their cars. They then wait 15 minutes or more to make sure that they don't have any allergic reactions.

Down the road, they hope to process 12,000 vaccinations a day. And it could not come at a better time, as Los Angeles County has passed the grim milestone of 1 million COVID-19 cases.

This has been an ordeal for the medical workers, the firefighters, the volunteers, all those people behind me down in that parking lot, who have been trying to get ahead and stop the virus from spreading.

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DAVID ORTIZ, LOS ANGELES FIRE DEPARTMENT: They are working nonstop, they're working hard. Talked to a captain who had two hours of sleep, trying to set this up, trying to set up the logistics part of this huge ontaking here at Dodgers. And you see him and he has a smile on his face because he's doing

everything he possibly can, humanly, to make a success, to make us efficient.

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VERCAMMEN: One of the concerns here at Dodger Stadium is the supply of vaccine does not get stuck up somewhere in the pipeline. They say they have enough to keep on putting shots in arms until Wednesday.

But this one glimmer of good news in Los Angeles County, which has been so hard hit by coronavirus -- reporting from Los Angeles, I'm Paul Vercammen. Back to you.

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BRUNHUBER: Infectious disease expert Dr. Stephen Parodi joins me from San Francisco, California. He's the associate executive director of the Permanente Medical Group at Kaiser Permanente.

Thank you for joining me again. We just heard the catastrophic situation in L.A. County, the situation terrible across the state, as you well know. You know, you help oversee some 21 hospitals, 4.5 million patients.

What are you seeing on the ground there?

DR. STEPHEN PARODI, ASSOCIATE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PERMANENTE MEDICAL GROUP: Yes, it is very busy right now. We have over 3,000 hospitalized COVID patients, 650 are in the ICU and it's time to put this to a stop.

And the efforts for mass vaccination are critical right now. We're deeply involved with it. Numerous other health systems are involved. And this is really going to take all hands on deck to put a stop to this pandemic.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, that's what I want to get to. The national vaccine rollout has been widely criticized as a disaster. Your hospital system is part of a huge effort. Your phone centers are overwhelmed with calls about the vaccine.

I understand you don't have enough vaccine supply to meet demand and you're not alone. The federal government expanded the list of people eligible to everyone over 65 but didn't increase the shipments of the vaccine.

So how are you coping with this?

And do you expect to run out?

PARODI: So we've actually been matching the supply to demand as best as possible. We're working with the state and the federal government to inform them about how much we do need. In the meantime, we're asking people and actually proactively

outreaching people to wait. And this is actually providing us with some time to set up those mass vaccine sites.

As you referenced in the earlier report, it takes a ton of logistics to put this together. We're working and taking that that time to be ready for when that vaccine is going to be coming in the next few weeks and hopefully months.

And actually the incoming Biden administration, their national vaccine program that they've outlined in the $400 billion package that they have put together, is an encouraging sign, at least from my perspective.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, concretely on that, how will that help?

There's billions in funding for vaccine distribution and testing and so on.

How specifically will it help?

And maybe more importantly even, how long do you think it will take for that help to sort of filter through to the system, on the ground where you are?

PARODI: Well, you know, what I'm encouraged by is that they are going to invest in community clinics. They're going to invest in mobile clinics. And that's going to be critical because we want to bring the vaccine to where the people are.

Some of them will be able to come into the health system but some of them are socially disadvantaged patients and they need to be -- actually have the vaccine brought to them.

The other big investment here is the public health infrastructure. We've been talking about this for the past 10 months.

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PARODI: It's been hollowed out. This program is going to invest in getting 100,000 workers on the ground. We, the health systems, need that help. We need that public health infrastructure.

BRUNHUBER: Finally, before I let you go, your organization sort of is part of a national chain, if you will. So you have locations in different states. So I'm wondering, there's a vast disparity between how some of the states are doing in terms of the vaccinations; some of them are doing it at twice the rate than others.

Are you getting a chance to sort of look at the -- what works in states like Colorado, for example, and what doesn't, like here in Georgia, which I think has just distributed the lowest percentage of any state's doses?

PARODI: You know, what it really takes is actually getting around the proverbial table and having the health systems, the public health sector, as well as government officials, actually sitting down and organizing this.

You know, I think of this as almost like a public health works organization, like we did back in the Depression era, and actually getting everybody to roll up their sleeves and work together.

The smaller states -- you referenced Colorado -- have been able to do that. We need that kind of national coordination. That's really what I think is going to get us over the hump.

BRUNHUBER: All right. You have such a huge task on your hands. I wish you the best of luck. Thank you very much for speaking with us. We really appreciate it. Dr. Stephen Parodi, thank you.

PARODI: Thank you for having me.

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BRUNHUBER: Norway is investigating why 23 elderly patients died after receiving the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine. The country is currently vaccinating people in nursing homes with serious underlying diseases.

Let's bring in CNN's Scott McLean.

On its face, elderly people dying after getting the vaccine, it seems extremely troubling; obviously, raises lots of questions.

What can you tell us?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kim. Context is extremely important here. Norway, like most other Western countries, is really prioritizing the elderly and vulnerable people, particularly those living in nursing homes or care homes.

The Norwegian Medicines Agency, that's the regulator in Norway, they were quick to point out, of these 23 deaths of people who had received the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, they were elderly and frail to begin with.

So the agency says that anyone who dies or has an adverse reaction within a few days of receiving the vaccine, those are investigated. Of the 23, 13 have been assessed so far. In the early reports suggest common vaccine side effects or reactions like fever, nausea, may have contributed to the deaths of these patients.

I want to read a statement from Norwegian health authorities.

"In Norway, we are now vaccinating the elderly and people in nursing homes with serious underlying diseases. Therefore, it is expected the deaths close to the time of vaccination may occur. We cannot rule out that adverse reactions to the vaccine occurring within the first days following vaccination, such as fever and nausea, may contribute to more serious course and fatal outcomes in patients with severe underlying disease."

So Pfizer, the manufacturer of the vaccine, also responded to the news, saying that their thoughts are with the families of those who have died. They said that they are working with Norwegian authorities to gather all of the relevant information. But they insist that this is not alarming and in line with expectations.

One other point, Kim, that's that there's still a lot of unanswered questions here, obviously.

But a lot of people are probably wondering, why are we hearing about this happening in Norway and not any other country?

The short answer is Norway is quite transparent when it comes to this type of thing. They regularly publish adverse reactions. The bottom line is, this may well have happened or similar cases may well have happened elsewhere; they just haven't been published yet.

BRUNHUBER: Important context, as you say, and it shouldn't dissuade anybody from getting the vaccine. Thank you so much, Scott McLean, appreciate it.

Amid threats of armed protests, security has been tightened at capital buildings across the U.S. We'll take you to some potential hot spots to see what's being done to keep people safe.

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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber and you're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

In the wake of the deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol, authorities are racing to ensure the safety of next week's inauguration. Amid a threat of violent, armed protest, much of downtown Washington, including the National Mall, is ringed by razor wire, fences and concrete barricades.

The area is patrolled by armed security and some 25,000 National Guard members, which is a stronger military footprint than the U.S. has in Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria combined.

All of this as we're learning much more about the attack at the U.S. Capitol. Investigators have opened 275 criminal cases and so far have charged 98 people for their alleged roles in the coup attempt.

Federal officials say that number will rise as more information comes to light. And it's not just the Capitol. All 50 states are on high alert for possible violence ahead of President-Elect Biden's inauguration Wednesday.

Our reporters have deployed to capitals across the country, monitoring developments: our Natasha Chen at the Georgia state capital in Atlanta; Miguel Marquez is at Pennsylvania's capital in Harrisburg, which will close to the public in just a few hours but we're going to start with Matt Rivers in Austin, Texas, where demonstrations are expected later today.

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MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Matt Rivers outside the state capital building in Austin, Texas, which was the scene for very small protests during the day on Saturday, a handful of protesters showed up. All was peaceful.

Now the attention of the public safety authorities here in Austin, Texas, goes to Sunday. We know the Department of Public Safety is expecting at least two potential events during the day. We still don't know exactly how big those events are expected to be.

But what we do know is the capital grounds and the state capital building will remain closed at least through the inauguration.

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MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Miguel Marquez in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where authorities say they are prepared for whatever protesters may throw at them.

They're not entirely sure protesters will come but the capital here in Harrisburg will be shut down Sunday through Thursday.

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MARQUEZ: They put up some barriers but they haven't fenced it off like other capitals around the country.

One thing they will do here is shut these streets in front of the capital to traffic. They are concerned about people open carrying, bringing long guns and other guns to these protests.

Pennsylvania is an open carry state. They've had several protests throughout the last year, both against COVID restrictions and then against the outcome of the election. One thing authorities are very concerned about is a counter protest erupting and mixing it up with pro-Trump protesters.

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NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Natasha Chen in Atlanta. There are barriers wrapping all around the Georgia state capital and the sidewalks on many sides of it are closed.

You can also see armored vehicles and a strong law enforcement presence. The Georgia Building Authority says no one has requested permits to protest at this time but that may not stop groups from still trying to gather here.

The Republican lieutenant governor Jeff Duncan acknowledged to CNN that President Trump's words have made Georgia less safe. He also said he cannot fathom seeing such heightened security to ward off potential threats from people in his own party.

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BRUNHUBER: The eyes of the world will be on Joe Biden's inauguration. Reversing a travel ban and rejoining the Paris climate deal will be major shifts from the Trump foreign policy. The president-elect may also look to repair ties with NATO and face some old challenges from China and North Korea.

Beijing is looking to capitalize on U.S. unrest. This after the White House backed Hong Kong protests. And North Korea is again pledging to strengthen its nuclear program after a brief, at times, even cordial detente with President Trump.

For more, CNN's Will Ripley is live in Hong Kong.

Quite the to-do list for President-Elect Biden.

So what's happening here in the U.S.?

The attack on the Capitol by fellow Americans, the militarization of D.C., America's allies must be looking at this with the same shock and disbelief as most of us are here stateside.

So what does President Biden do in order to restore the so-called brand America post-Trump?

Why does that actually matter?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's all about America's soft power and influence around the world, Kim, which has given the United States a great advantage in the post-World War II decades.

In the last four years, I bear witness living abroad to the erosion of that soft power. However, even people who got used to the roller coaster of the Trump administration, world leaders were shocked to see the scenes out of Washington, the attack on the Capitol.

As you mentioned, the militarization, troops in the streets, the kind of scenes one might expect in countries like Venezuela, Belarus but not the United States. So a key challenge facing President Biden is going to be to restore confidence in the stability of American democracy, particularly for traditional allies in the E.U. or the G7 nations, who are wondering right now if America is going to stabilize.

America basically was once considered the shining example of democracy around the world. Now I heard one diplomat saying, it's a country other countries look to for an example of what not to do.

The question is, is Trumpism the new normal?

Is Biden just going to be a four-year reprieve?

Or has the pendulum swung back to where America's traditional allies can trust there will not be this continued populist movement and destabilization that the United States is grappling with right now?

BRUNHUBER: Many of us asking that same question here. So China obviously will be a huge issue. I want to get to that but North Korea, since you've reported from there quite extensively, President Trump's relationship with Kim Jong-un was certainly unique.

But it didn't lead to anything concrete. If anything, the threat seems to have gotten worse. We saw, just before Biden's inauguration, coming up, right on cue, we saw that high-profile North Korean missile show and tell.

So what now?

Is there a path to denuclearization under Biden or can we expect more of the name?

RIPLEY: From what I'm hearing from multiple sources, denuclearization from the North Korean perspective is really off the table at this stage because while the Korean detente that happened during the Trump years -- the love letters between Kim and Trump, those three made for TV meetings between the two leaders -- what it did do is temporarily de-escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

If you think back to 2017, the fire and fury days, those seem kind of like a not too distant memory. But when I've seen the military parades, first in October, the more recent military parade a couple of days ago.

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RIPLEY: And you see North Korea parading new types of missiles that have yet to be tested, this brings me right back to a few years ago, where North Korea follows this playbook, where first you see the missiles or perhaps the missile mockups in a parade. Then at some point later, they test these missiles.

So President Biden could have a real foreign policy challenge on his hands in his early days if North Korea does decide to go ahead and test their new ICBM or their submarine-launched ballistic missile or some of the new weapons they put on display.

The North Koreans know, unlike the unpredictable President Trump, that President-Elect Biden is unlikely to take any sort of drastic action in terms of a military movement on the Korean Peninsula.

That might embolden Kim Jong-un to take more dramatic steps to get the world, particularly the United States, attention. All their state media rhetoric seems to be moving closer and closer to that inevitable outcome.

BRUNHUBER: All right. So much to talk about. We're going to have you back in the next hour and we'll get to China, because there's a lot to discuss there. So we'll have you back in the next hour. Will Ripley in Hong Kong, appreciate it.

Election officials in Uganda say president Yoweri Museveni has won his sixth term in office. But his chief rival, singer turned candidate Bobi Wine, isn't buying it. He's alleging vote rigging and wants the results dismissed. The internet was blocked ahead of Thursday's vote and a day later Wine put under house arrest.

For the latest, David McKenzie is live in Johannesburg.

David, Museveni claims these were the most cheating three, in his words, elections since independence in 1962. That seems doubtful, to say the least.

What can you tell us about the allegations of vote rigging?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, with a lack of international observers, also the internet being shut down by the government and the main opposition candidate being placed under house arrest, there are a lot of serious questions about this election and the results, questions that were really being posed even before the first ballot was counted.

Right after the announcement of President Museveni winning a sixth term, I spoke to Bobi Wine on the phone. He was still under house arrest. He said they have evidence of rigging and fraud, though they are yet to present that evidence.

And he said that they had been intimidated, including the party agents who were trying to establish the fair and free nature of this result throughout the country. So all signs point to a very problematic election. And yet Museveni, in his address late last night, said, well, he really isn't that fussed whether he's president or not, take a listen.

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YOWERI MUSEVENI, UGANDAN PRESIDENT: I am not in politics looking for anything for myself. I don't need to be in the government to have a good life because I have a good life already as a farmer. However, my going into leadership was to deal with the number of serious historical challenges.

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MCKENZIE: That folksy demeanor, one has to take that with a pinch of salt because twice already, there has been an attempt -- and successfully -- to extend term limits, to raise the age of those who are able to stand for presidency, just so Museveni could keep in power.

So there will be tense times ahead in Uganda. But yet again, Museveni proves is willing to stay in power, as he has for more than 30 years -- Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right, we'll see what role, if any, opposition leader Bobi Wine has going forward. Thank you so much, David McKenzie, in Johannesburg.

As American officials worry about having enough vaccines to go around, Florida is dealing with a whole new kind of problem, tourists flying in to get their shot. We'll explain why this is even possible. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: It's easy to get numb to the staggering and devastating numbers. The U.S. is fast approaching 24 million COVID-19 cases since the pandemic started. Florida is among the states with an increase in cases. More than 12,000 new infections were reported on Saturday alone. That brings the state's total to more than 1.5 million.

People are waiting in line across the country, including Florida, to get those precious vaccines. But we're seeing the disturbing trend, vaccine tourism. CNN's Patrick Oppmann explains.

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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Florida has long attracted visitors from around the world for its year-round sunny weather, miles of beaches and now for its supply of coronavirus vaccines.

In late December, Florida began offering vaccines to people aged 65 and older. Almost overnight, there were long lines, jammed phone lines. And the websites that offered appointments for the vaccines crashed.

Since Florida does not require people seeking vaccines to be U.S. citizens or even Florida residents, it's led to some visitors coming from abroad to get vaccinated. Critics call it vaccine tourism.

Miguel Bender Kats, who came to Florida from Mexico, calls it a lifesaver.

"I was planning on making a trip. But when they said they started the vaccines here, we decided to come," he said, "because we are elderly. And in Mexico, the situation is pretty serious."

Some Florida residents say people who actually live in the state should be given priority. That is tricky in a place where so many people are constantly coming through for short periods of time, from seasonal snowbird visitors that travel in from the North to spend the winter months in Florida to migrant labor workers.

Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, says Floridians are meant to be getting the vaccines. GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL): We have people all over the country, because

we put seniors first and because people actually see shots going in arms, you have literally people all over the world and all over the country, calling here to see. And we're not doing that. We're not doing it for tourists.

OPPMANN (voice-over): But visitor after visitor, some coming from abroad just to get immunized, seem to be receiving the vaccine without any problems.

Ana Rosenfeld says she comes from Argentina to Florida to see her daughter and grandchildren. On this trip, she also got vaccinated, something she says she couldn't do yet back home in Argentina.

"I would like to clarify that it's not because one or three Argentines get vaccinated," she says. "The Americans are residents, particularly in Florida, won't have that possibility.

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OPPMANN (voice-over): "We aren't taking that away from anyone."

For years, so many Latin Americans, who could afford to, would travel to Miami to shop or vacation or for medical procedures. The city became known as the gateway to the Americas. For many now, Florida has become the gateway to the vaccine -- Patrick Oppmann, CNN.

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BRUNHUBER: Stay with us. CNN NEWSROOM will be right back.

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BRUNHUBER: In just three days, Kamala Harris will make history as the first woman to hold the office of U.S. vice president. A new CNN special report gives us a closer look at her historic journey from California to Washington, D.C. Here's a preview.

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ABBY PHILLIP, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was literally a match made in Hollywood ...

CHRISETTE HUDLIN, KAMALA HARRIS' FRIEND: Oh, my gosh, I must have known Kamala a good 20-25 years before I met Doug.

PHILLIP (voice-over): -- produced by an actual Hollywood heavyweight who just happens to be Harris' best friend.

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PHILLIP (voice-over): Chrisette Hudlin met entertainment lawyer Doug Emhoff when she needed legal advice in 2013.

HUDLIN: We were so impressed with him.

DOUG EMHOFF, KAMALA HARRIS' HUSBAND: And by the end of the hour, it was like, "Yes, you seem pretty cool. I might want to set you up with somebody" -- the -- you know, Kamala Harris.

I'm like, "Kamala Harris? The attorney general?"

And she said, "Yes, but I think you'd be great."

KAMALA HARRIS (D), VICE PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: And you texted me that very same night. You were at a Lakers game.

EMHOFF: I was.

K. HARRIS: And I'm a Warriors fan --

EMHOFF: And she said, "Go Lakers."

K. HARRIS: -- but I said, "Go Kobe" or something.

EMHOFF: I was like, she said that -- she's --

K. HARRIS: And then you called -- yes, you called me that morning.

EMHOFF: I violated every rule of dating, I believe. I leave this long rambling voicemail and ended the call. And if you remember that scene in "Swingers" --

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You should call me tomorrow, or in two days, whatever. Anyway, my number is --

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EMHOFF: That was me leaving the voicemail and I thought I'd never hear from her. But then --

PHILLIP (voice-over): Harris had a break in her schedule and called him.

K. HARRIS: We ended up talking for like 45 minutes to an hour and just laughing the whole time.

PHILLIP (voice-over): A couple of days later, their first date.

EMHOFF: It felt like we had known each other and I just didn't want it to end. And so, the next morning I pulled the move of emailing her with my availability for the next four months, including long weekends.

And I said something like I'm too old to hide the ball. You're great. I want to see if we can make this work. Here's when I'm available next. And I guess it worked. PHILLIP: How did you feel about that?

K. HARRIS: I was terrified.

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MAYA HARRIS, KAMALA HARRIS' DAUGHTER: I knew Doug was the right one when I saw how he made her laugh. Because one of the things that Mommy used to always say is, "Life will have its ups and downs. So you make sure that you find a life partner who makes you laugh."

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BRUNHUBER: Join CNN's senior political correspondent Abby Phillip for an hour-long special report, "Kamala Harris: Making History." That's Sunday night at 10:00 Eastern time, Monday morning in Asia.

That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber and I'll be back with more news after the break.