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Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) is Interviewed about the Republican Party; New Economic Numbers Released Today; Small Investors Taunt Hedge Funds; Teachers Fight Return to Classrooms. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired January 28, 2021 - 08:30   ET

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

[08:30:00]

REP. ADAM KINZINGER (R-IL): Our party needs to take a step back, look at where we've come. You know, this is the party, if you think back, to the days of Ronald Reagan and inspiration and aspiration, to where we are today where the president's saying things and we're trying to nuance it in saying, well, he didn't exactly incite a riot, yet we've seen over -- you know, talking about fighting basically harder than we ever have and all these different things, we've seen, this is not the party I joined. This is not the party, you know, that really is for conservative principles.

So, how do I feel about it? I don't know. I just know this. I know as a party we need to -- we need to restore the integrity and really work to rebuild the trust of the American people that I think we lost.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: You have said, I've heard you say it, David Axelrod, Jim Sciutto, you are in a battle now for the soul really of the Republican Party. That's how you see it. You say it's your five- meter target, in other words, which is a military term. That's the closest thing that you are concerned about right now is the battle for the Republican Party.

Well, look, in the last 24 hours, I'm talking about the last 24 hours, you have the House leader going to meet with the former president. You have Marjorie Taylor Greene getting a committee assignment. You have the Republican Party itself coming out with an official statement against impeachment.

So given all that, I ask you this morning, Congressman, how do you think your battle is going?

KINZINGER: So far, not great. You know, we're still at the very beginning of this. And, you know, we failed as a party just generally for four years to explain to the American people really what our values are. And we've pivoted to, we have to win at all costs. And, you know, Donald Trump, he is a fighter and we're going to back him and we got some policies that we liked in place. But in that process, we've lost the discussion about what is conservatism.

I believe conservatism is that a kid born in the inner city of Chicago should have the same opportunity as a kid born in Highland Park, Illinois. And all the stuff we believe is, how do we get somebody to that perspective? And -- but nobody's heard that from us in years. And so it's not going great at the moment, but, you know, this is the really beginning of it. And that's where the focus is now is, we have to go back to our roots. And, look, there's a lot of people that, you know, avid Donald Trump supporters because they're conservative that need -- that need to hear the story of where we've actually gone as a party off the rails and how we get back there.

BERMAN: Marjorie Taylor Greene, as we said, the K-file reporting, which you're quoted in, by the way, Marjorie Taylor Greene endorsed or expressed support for the idea of executing Democratic members of Congress. We see her on the video with David Hogg as well. She has now a seat on the Education Committee given to her by House leadership.

What do you think should happen to Marjorie Taylor Greene in Congress?

KINZINGER: Let's be clear, she's not a Republican. I mean -- I mean she may be like this new definition of Republican, but that's -- that's kind of a rhino thing, a Republican in name only is what she is. And I personally don't think she should have any committees. I, you know, I look at that and I go, well, the Education Committee, first off, is not considered a good committee to get on, but I don't think she should have the privilege any committees, especially when you see the things that are coming out, the embracing of conspiracy theories, which have really -- not just unmoored the party.

So not just from a Republican perspective am I worried about like what QAnon has done. Obviously, we saw what happened at the Capitol. And you see things like pizzagate. We all know friends that have kind of lost a sense of reality because they've been pulled into this dark underworld of conspiracies. And that's where it is incumbent on leaders and everybody, frankly, to expose that darkness, to bring light to darkness to begin to disinfect that.

And so to the extent we have members of Congress that embrace anything like that or become completely unmoored from truth, we can't -- we can't accept that. And that's where the battle begins, is just letting people know that it's OK to speak out against -- against this stuff and defend the integrity of the party.

BERMAN: You say she's not a Republican. And to that, show you the election results from her district where she won the primary with over 50 percent of the vote. In the general election, look at this, I mean she got nearly 75 percent of the vote. So how can you say she's not a Republican? Maybe she is what the Republican Party is.

KINZINGER: Yes. Well, look, I did the same as her. I actually did better in some -- some of that area. But, you know, and, you're right, I mean that's the real definition now is, does -- do people like her become the majority of the party for the long term? I mean we're in a moment -- it's a -- in this moment I don't think she in any way can define the party. And everybody calls me a rhino and I'm as conservative as anybody out there. So I think it's actually OK to look at this and say, somebody that espouses beliefs that believe a Satanist cabal runs the U.S. government, opposite of what like, you know, Ronald Reagan or George W. or George H.W. or anybody ever believed. That, to me, is a little more unhinged from the Republican platform.

[08:35:00]

We've got to quit being a party of personality and get back to being a party of principles first. And I think if we can do that, we'll be competitive and earn people's trust.

BERMAN: You told Jim Sciutto that in a way the Republican Party now, for you, is on a kind of double secret probation. That you're not sure if this will ultimately be the party for you as you go forward.

When will you know? How will you know whether there's a place for you in the Republican Party?

KINZINGER: I don't -- I don't know the answer to that. I think, you know, that's why I'm focused on engaging in this battle now. And I'm not going to fight like an angry -- throw things, but just going back to the American people and to the Republican Party and reminding folks of where we came from, which we've lost. And I think, look, if there becomes a point at which a guy like me is just completely ostracized because I'm not angry enough, I'm not divisive enough, I don't go into the -- as Jeff Flake called it, the demographic cul-de-sac enough, then, obviously, that will be a moment. But, man, until then, I'm going to fight -- I'm going to fight hard. I've never been a kind of person to give up.

And, look, you know, the idea of a third party, I know a lot of people are floating around, they just don't work in the country. It will be the Republican and the Democrat Party. I'd just love to see the Republican Party be strong again and aspirational again.

BERMAN: You know, you say if it gets to the point you're ostracized. Well, Matt Gaetz is going out to Wyoming to campaign against Liz Cheney today. And, again, I say it again, Kevin McCarthy is going down to meet with the former president, who's the inspirational leader of all of this. You know, how can you say it hasn't already happened to an extent?

KINZINGER: So, you know, look, all these trends are fairly, in the arc of history, recent in the Republican Party. Donald Trump was president for four years. And I think, you know, a party, in essence, surrounding him when he's president, that is understandable.

When you're out, though, and especially after we see things like an attempted insurrection on the U.S. government, that's where I think -- it's going to take a little time, but we're going to see, does the party just double embrace him or is there a slow awakening? Is this a Saturday morning after a, you know, pretty bad Friday night bender where our eyes are just like looking around and going, man, what did we do last night? And that's my hope. And that's what I'm trying to bring light to people to say, look at how far we've come off the road.

And I'll tell you what, if you're the hard corest (ph) Democrat out there, you should want a Republican Party like I'm talking about because this country needs two healthy and two inclusive parties to do battle as politicians politically and politely. BERMAN: Adam Kinzinger, we appreciate you coming on and sharing your

views this morning. Thank you.

KINZINGER: You bet. See ya.

BERMAN: We do have breaking news.

New unemployment figures give us a glimpse of the lingering economic crisis.

Plus, what might be the most amazing story on earth today. What in the world is going on with Gamestop sending Wall Street and investors everywhere just regular people with money in the market into a frenzy?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:41:55]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: America's dire unemployment crisis continues one year into this pandemic.

CNN chief business correspondent Christine Romans joins us now with some new economic numbers.

What are you seeing, Christine?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: You know, look, we've got a couple of things here I want to bring up to you here. The GDP, the economy, at the end of the year, the last quarter of the Trump administration, it grew 4 percent, but that was not enough to save the number for the year. For the year, a contraction in the American economy of 3.5 percent. It shows you, we are far below pandemic levels and a real hole trying to dig out of for the economy heading into this new year.

We also saw those weekly jobless claims, as we see every Thursday morning, Alisyn, and those were tough again, 847,000 first time filings for unemployment benefits. By my count, this is 45 weeks in a row, Alisyn, that any one of those weeks would have been an all-time record. But we, again and again, have record-breaking layoffs every single week. And that has not abated.

CAMEROTA: OK.

Meanwhile, can you explain what's happening with Gamestop?

ROMANS: I know. Everyone's talking about it. It's unbelievable. It's essentially, Alisyn, an online flash mob beating the professional investors at their own game. If you look at shares of Gamestop and AMC, they have skyrocketed. They've been propelled by amateur investors on Twitter and on this Reddit chat room called Wall Street Bets.

So while the overall stock market fell, Gamestop has surged. It finished up 134 percent yesterday. It's up again this morning pre- market. AMC, the movie theater chain, that was up 300 percent yesterday.

Essentially this is how I can explain it. The Internet traders, everyday amateur traders on the Internet, have declared war on the big short sellers in Gamestop and AMC.

What are short sellers? These are sophisticated investors, big players, who place bets that a stock will fall. So the more these stocks climb, the more money the short sellers lose. And they're losing billions. It's like a big game. Internet populism at its finest here.

The action is so wild that TD Ameritrade and Robin Hood have restricted trading of these stocks. You know, Wells Fargo also banning its advisers from telling clients to buy or sell Gamestop and AMC.

You know, Alisyn, it's like the marriage of a get-rich quick scheme and Internet populism all in the era of brokerage trading where there's no fees. So people don't even have to pay to do this. It shows how frothy the overall market is overall.

Now, the Reddit message board that sparked the frenzy actually was made private by the moderators briefly Wednesday. So that added even more confusion. And for many people, you know, seeing these fancy hedge funds lose billions of dollars is just rich, right? Just desserts for blood-thirsty short sellers.

Elizabeth Warren is a longtime critic of Wall Street. She has no sympathy for the hedge funders crying foul. This is what she said. She said, for years the same hedge funds, private equity firms and wealthy investors dismayed by the Gamestop trades have treated the stock market like their own personal casino while everyone else pays the price.

[08:45:01]

The Securities and Exchange Commission and the White House have both said they're watching the situation.

But, Alisyn, I feel like this situation is more like an episode of "Billions" or a Michael Lewis screen play.

John and Alisyn, it's just -- it's just bonkers and it's all for free, right? You can just go on, open up this brokerage account and buy these stocks. It has nothing to do with the fundamentals of the company.

BERMAN: It's actually, I think, more extraordinary than anything that Michael Lewis would write about or even "Billions." It's really, really crazy. And people are making money right now, you know, regular people, but this is going to end badly.

ROMANS: It -- oh, absolutely. And I want to be clear here, the number of people who have said to me, hey, should I buy Gamestop right here? Oh, my gosh, when this thing turns, it is going to be tears and poverty for whoever is putting a lot of money in these things. This is all just an Internet game here with real companies and real investors also on the other side.

CAMEROTA: Oh, my gosh. OK, Christine, thank you very much for explaining it in all of those terms.

OK, now to schools.

When will all public schools reopen for in-person learning? We're seeing standoffs in some cities between teachers and school districts. So we show you Chicago, next.

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[08:50:17]

BERMAN: This morning, Chicago teachers threatening to strike if they're forced to return to schools with more safety measures in place for coronavirus.

CNN's Omar Jimenez has more on the battle to reopen schools.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Are you, as a teacher, prepared to strike if necessary?

LORI TORRES, SPANISH LANGUAGE TEACHER, MONROE ELEMENTARY: I am.

JIMENEZ (voice over): Lori Torres is a Spanish teacher at a Chicago elementary school and in the middle of a battle between what she sees as her livelihood and her life. As Chicago Public Schools, the nation's third largest school district, is pushing to have kindergarten through eighth grade students return in person to the classroom.

JIMENEZ (on camera): And as it stands right now, you don't feel the school district is doing enough?

TORRES: I don't. I think it's OK that at a time like this that I take a step back and consider me.

JIMENEZ (voice over): But Chicago School District says it has put in place safety strategies, like masking, smaller class sizes, hand sanitizing stations, air purifiers and daily screening for the thousands of pre-k and special education students who were able to return weeks ago.

JANICE JACKSON, CEO, CHICAGO PUBLIC SCHOOLS: To date, we have not had to close a single school due to outbreaks of COVID-19.

JIMENEZ: That's not enough for Torres and the Chicago Teachers Union, which this week voted to stay in remote learning, just as the district was getting ready to reopen. The union demanding vaccinations and mass testing for students and staff among other things before teachers step foot back in the classroom, a goal President Biden laid out in his first few days in office.

But the president and his team are walking a political tightrope. On one hand, claiming to support the science of COVID-19, which shows very little risk of transmission at brick and mortar schools, while, on the other hand, wanting to support teachers unions.

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: Why do you think that the unions in many cases are overruling what the studies show?

RON KLAIN, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF: I don't think unions are overruling studies. I think what you're seeing is the schools that haven't made the investments to keep the students safe.

JIMENEZ: And it's not just Chicago dealing with this issue.

CROWD: We want school time.

JIMENEZ: This week, in Montclair, New Jersey, just outside New York City, a similar fight. Plans to reopen schools, scrapped when teachers refused to return.

In West Virginia, one of the state's largest teachers' unions is suing the board of education which voted unanimously to resume in-person learning by the end of the month.

And in Los Angeles, the superintendent says all of its teachers should be vaccinated before returning to in-person instruction.

AUSTIN BEUTNER, LAUSD SUPERINTENDENT: Once that's done, we'll be at the school front door with big smiles under our masks.

JIMENEZ: But as both sides of the debate await a solution, parents and students await answers, with the experiences of virtual school top of mind.

JEZENIAH KEYS, 7TH GRADER, BELMONT-CRAGIN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN CHICAGO: We don't always have our cameras on so the teacher don't know if you need help, struggling. So you have to really speak up for yourself.

JIMENEZ: The Keys family in Chicago is still weighing their options.

MARIAH KEYS, 2ND GRADE: I want to stay home.

JIMENEZ (on camera): You want to stay home?

M. KEYS: Because I don't want to wear my mask all day.

STEVEN KEYS, FATHER: We want to make sure that we're not just, you know, expediting our children and putting them in a situation where we just want them out of the house.

JIMENEZ (on camera): While other families say it's time.

ROSARIO ANACLETO, MOTHER: I'll be that parent that's constantly like, put your mask over your nose. Do not touch this. Do not touch that. And I believe that I've cemented that into their brains enough and with the school's help they're going to do OK.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: Now, pre-k students have been back for weeks, but today is now the second day in a row they've instructed to stay home because the school district says they can't guarantee adequate staffing. And teachers are in the current 1B vaccine rollout here in Chicago, but until supply meets demand, we're here.

Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Omar Jimenez, thank you very much for all of that reporting.

So Emmanuel Bishop is a young man of many talents and a Down syndrome advocate with an ambitious goal to inspire people like himself around the world. In today's "Human Factor," he shows us what's possible when your goals match your potential.

Here's Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Emmanuel Bishop is challenging common preconceptions of young men with Down syndrome.

EMMANUEL BISHOP, DOWN SYNDROME SELF-ACTIVIST: I'm a violinist, a swimmer, golfer and a polyglot.

GUPTA: As a kid, the violin became his first love.

BISHOP: I started to play at age six.

GUPTA: Emmanuel's passion for music has taken him to stages around the globe, including an invitation to perform at mass at the Vatican.

BISHOP: I am an ambassador of hope.

[08:55:01]

GUPTA: An ambassador proficient in multiple languages.

BISHOP: English, Spanish, French and I study Latin.

GUPTA: Emmanuel has also set his sights on his next Special Olympics win.

BISHOP: I have won 52 medals in swimming and golf.

GUPTA: Laps in the morning and hitting the green in the afternoon, proving he can excel in the pool or on the links.

BISHOP: I'm living the dream.

GUPTA: To those who doubt his abilities, he says --

BISHOP: Presume competence.

GUPTA: And to young people like him --

BISHOP: I want people with Down syndrome to follow your talents.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CAMEROTA: What a remarkable story.

And CNN's coverage continues after this.

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