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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Senate To Debate COVID Relief After 11-Hour Reading Of Bill; Feds Probing Communications Between Rioters And U.S. Lawmakers; Italy Blocks Export Of Coronavirus Vaccine Outside the E.U. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired March 05, 2021 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[05:31:09]
LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. Welcome back to EARLY START. I'm Laura Jarrett.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christine Romans. It's just about 31 minutes past the hour this Friday morning.
Millions of American families waiting desperately for COVID relief but they weren't the focus on the Senate floor overnight.
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SENATE CLERK: -- determines appropriate from the general fund of the Treasury. But in no case shall such transfers occur after September 30th, 2030. Financial assistance --
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ROMANS: What you're hearing there, almost 11 hours of clerks reading all 628 pages of the $1.9 trillion COVID relief package to a mostly empty chamber.
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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): We all know this will merely delay the inevitable. It will accomplish little more than a few sore throats for the Senate clerks who work very hard day in, day out to help the Senate function.
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JARRETT: Republican Sen. Ron Johnson, who spent months pushing various conspiracies related to the big lie, forcing the clerks to read the entire bill aloud before debate resumes this morning, all in a doomed effort to delay relief to the people who need it the most.
CNN's Daniella Diaz is live on Capitol Hill again for us. Daniella, some of the theater is over. The theater is never over on Congress but some of it is for now. Now a very long day ahead. DANIELLA DIAZ, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: A very long day ahead, indeed. The Senate worked until 2:00 a.m. last night. And by the Senate, I mean the clerks reading this Senate -- the legislative text of this COVID-19 legislation. They -- it was more than 10 hours of reading. They started in the early afternoon yesterday and concluded around 2:00 a.m.
And we're expecting everything to start back up around 9:00 a.m. today with three hours of debate, give and take, with at noon, this vote-a- rama beginning. And Democrats are moving forward on this legislation without any Republican support. That's important to know.
Let me talk a little bit about what's in this legislative text that the Senate will vote on in the next couple of hours. It includes $1,400 stimulus checks. It includes $400 a week of unemployment benefits. It includes state and local funding and money -- funding for vaccine distribution. What it does not include is this $15.00 minimum wage increase that progressive Democrats wanted in this legislation.
And so what happens now? As I said, at 9:00 a.m. the Senate reconvenes for debate for three hours, give and take. Then at noon vote-a-rama begins and that's when the Senate will vote on amendment after amendment after amendment. And it could honestly take up to 20 hours and go into the weekend. It could go overnight.
And this is because, as you mentioned, Senate Republican Ron Johnson wants to drag this out. He wants to point out provisions of this legislation he does not agree with because this legislation has zero bipartisan support. No Republicans have signed on to this legislation. So he's recruiting Republican colleagues to join him in this effort.
But the clock is ticking because millions of Americans will lose their unemployment benefits in mid-March -- in nine days. And so Biden wants this bill on his desk before then.
JARRETT: Yes, time is of the essence here.
And Daniella, whatever the Senate ultimately passes, it then has to go back to the House again because this bill did actually have some changes since the House voted on it. But some progressives aren't thrilled with those changes, so how is all this going to shake out?
DIAZ: That's exactly right. House progressive are angry, specifically about this provision -- this $15.00 minimum wage increase they really wanted and they really fought for that is not included in this legislation.
But important to note is that Biden needed to work with moderate Senate Democrats to be able to pass this legislation in the Senate because he needed all 50 Democratic senators to sign on to this legislation. So progressives are angry that they're the ones that have to compromise on what they want for this legislation to pass.
[05:35:03]
There was some debate about having Vice President Kamala Harris overrule the Senate parliamentarian when this provision was removed by the Senate parliamentarian. That is ultimately not happening. The White House has zero plans to do that.
And now, House progressives are trying to figure out how they can work with the White House to get their needs met -- what they want included in this legislation.
JARRETT: All right, Daniella Diaz. We know you are staying on top of it -- thanks.
ROMANS: So did any U.S. lawmakers help the Capitol insurrectionists in any way? CNN has learned federal investigators are looking at communications between members of Congress and those rioters to see whether lawmakers or their staff had a hand in it, knowingly or even unknowingly.
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REP. JASON CROW (D-CO): I actually wouldn't be surprised if members of Congress were involved and complicit in some of the riots. And we actually saw on the morning of -- I wouldn't be -- I just wouldn't be, which is a sad testament to the state of affairs in Congress right now, to be honest with you, and the state of affairs in our politics that there are some depraved people that serve in that chamber.
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ROMANS: So what are the Feds looking at? CNN's Shimon Prokupecz reports from Capitol Hill.
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SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): One of the things that we've learned for certain is that there is information that the FBI has gathered from cellphone towers here at the Capitol that indicates that members of Congress were communicating with the rioters. There are pings off of cellphones that connect with lawmakers -- the cellphones belonging to lawmakers -- certainly raising a lot of questions.
The FBI has gathered a lot of information. What they did is they went through the cellphone data to see who was inside the Capitol on the day of the insurrection. Also, they were looking at data leading up to the insurrection.
And what they found was that these cellphones -- some of them belonging to the rioters, some of them belonging to members of Congress -- were communicating. Some of it is during the attack while some of the people were inside the Capitol on that day -- on January sixth. Some of it is leading up to it.
The thing is they don't know exactly or at least they haven't revealed to us what exactly that data is, whether it's text messages, whether it's actual people calling other people. So that is still the information that we don't have. But they do have this data. This is data that is collected from cellphones that are communicating between each other, and they have this information now. The question, of course, is what do they do with it next?
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JARRETT: Shimon, thank you for that.
Jacob Chansley, the one known as the 'QAnon Shaman', now speaking out from jail. With his horns and his face paint, Chansley, one of the most recognizable members of that mob that stormed the Capitol all to stop the peaceful transfer of power. But that is not how Chansley sees it.
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JACOB CHANSLEY, 'QANON SHAMAN': And my actions were not an attack on this country. That is incorrect.
Well, I sang a song and that's a part of Shamanism. It's about creating positive vibrations in a sacred chamber.
I also stopped people from stealing and vandalizing that sacred space, the Senate. OK, I actually stopped somebody from stealing muffins out of the -- out of the break room.
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JARRETT: This is the same one who wants his organic food in jail.
Chansley says he regrets entering the Capitol on that day but he does not regret his loyalty to former President Trump.
ROMANS: All right.
Hey, Texans, keep your mask handy. Numerous major companies say masks are still required in their stores and in their factory floors after Texas lifts its mask mandate next week. Masks save lives and these companies need to keep their employees and their customers safe. But without a mask mandate these workers now are in the terrible position of confronting customers who won't follow company rules.
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SARAH FRIZZELL, GROCERY STORE WORKER: I just don't think it's fair because we are on the frontlines. Everybody needs groceries. So in order for us to be safe, we need to get the vaccine.
ARNALDO RICHARDS, OWNER, PICOS RESTAURANT: In the very beginning back in May, some people were resistant to do it and we did not accept them here, and some people got very irate. But it's a matter of how you feel about your business or how you feel about protecting other people.
SHERMAN YEUNG, TOBIUO SUSHI AND BAR: Since the vaccine is not really readily available I just don't really feel comfortable putting all my staff at risk.
DANNY HART, GALVESTON RESTAURANT OWNER: I'm good with the 100 percent in the restaurants. We were at 75 percent. It's basically two or three tables that we get to reopen, which is nice -- which would be great for spring break.
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ROMANS: Now, the Texas Restaurant Association is calling on Texans to quote "show respect and patience" and said employees should wear masks and diners should don a mask when they are not at their table. That is showing patience and respect.
The restaurant trade group also says "employees are not law enforcement officers and should not be placed in a difficult or potentially dangerous situation" if a customer in Texas refuses to wear a mask.
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It's not just restaurants here. If you're flying through Dallas Love Field, Love Field officials say you've got to wear a mask. The airport said masks will still be required despite the change to the mask order by Gov. Abbott.
And Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has said nothing's going to change at Mavericks game. The team will follow NBA protocols.
Again, Texans, keep the mask handy. Just because the governor has changed the mask mandate it doesn't mean the companies who work there will.
JARRETT: Yes. So basically, everyone is still going to be wearing masks at private businesses --
ROMANS: Or should.
JARRETT: -- or should, even if the governor somehow doesn't think that it's worth having an official rule there.
All right, jumping overseas now. European countries have faced criticisms for rolling out vaccines too slowly. Now, for the first time, one country is invoking the powers of the E.U. to make sure vaccine doses don't leave its shores.
CNN's Melissa Bell is live for us this morning. Melissa, explain what Italy is doing here.
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this was an export ban mechanism that was introduced by the European Union at the end of January in the middle of that massive fight with AstraZeneca over the delays in vaccine supplies to the European Union. It is though, Laura, the first time that a European country has used those new powers, essentially stopping 250,000 AstraZeneca jabs from leaving Italy to head to Australia. Now, one Italian M.P. has been speaking out about it today, saying look, this was necessary. Italy, yesterday, recorded more than 20,000 new cases; Australia had only 11.
But clearly, this is much more about Europe than it is about Australia. It is about those vaccine shortages and the fact that these European countries desperately need the AstraZeneca vaccines. They've received fewer than they'd expected as per the contracts.
And now, countries and France have said that it could well follow where Italy has led. They are saying that they will make sure that those vaccines produced in European countries cannot leave.
It is also a measure, Laura, of what you mentioned a moment ago, which is the figures here in Europe. Not only the vaccines have been rolled out too slowly but the figures are worsening.
The World Health Organization says that while the number of new cases have declined over the course of the last six weeks that has now changed. That is a result of the spread of the new variants.
Sixty percent of new cases in France are now of the U.K. variant. That figure is 40 percent in Germany. Of course, as you know, those new variants spread extremely quickly.
So I think you really need to look at that Italian decision -- such an extreme decision in the light of that extreme pressure that European Union governments are under.
JARRETT: Yes, the context everything right now with all of the variants circulating.
Melissa Bell live in Paris for us this morning. Thank you so much -- appreciate it.
We'll be right back.
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ROMANS: All right.
The second woman to accuse New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo of sexual harassment sitting down for her first television interview. Here is what Charlotte Bennett told CBS News.
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CHARLOTTE BENNETT, FORMER CUOMO AIDE: He is lonely, he's tired.
NORAH O'DONNELL, ANCHOR, CBS EVENING NEWS: You've just finished dictation and the governor is telling you he's lonely and looking for a relationship.
BENNETT: Yes. He asked if I had trouble enjoying being with someone because of my trauma.
O'DONNELL: This is -- seems highly inappropriate.
BENNETT: Yes. The governor asked me if I was sensitive to intimacy.
O'DONNELL: In his office?
BENNETT: Yes, during the workday.
O'DONNELL: You have been quoted as saying that he also asked you about if you'd ever been with an older man.
BENNETT: Yes. He asked me if age difference mattered. He also explained that he was fine with anyone over 22.
O'DONNELL: And how old are you?
BENNETT: I'm 25.
O'DONNELL: What were you thinking as he's asking you these questions?
BENNETT: I thought he's trying to sleep with me. The governor is trying to sleep with me and I'm deeply uncomfortable and I have to get out of this room as soon as possible.
O'DONNELL: And to be clear, what made you think that he was trying to sleep with you?
BENNETT: Without explicitly saying it he implied to me that I was old enough for him and he was lonely.
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ROMANS: When asked for a comment, Cuomo's office referred CNN to Wednesday's press conference where the governor apologized and insisted he never meant to make anyone uncomfortable.
JARRETT: While President Biden may be focused on the coronavirus relief bill, the White House is pressing forward on other fronts, getting ready to nominate judges and appoint U.S. attorneys. Issues like climate change, gun reform, and immigration also top of mind.
The president also sending a team to the U.S.-Mexico border to report about unaccompanied migrant children being held on average for nearly 80 hours.
Here's a look from CNN reporters covering the Biden administration.
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PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN IMMIGRATION REPORTER (on camera): I'm Priscilla Alvarez in Washington, D.C.
Department of Homeland Security Sec. Alejandra Mayorkas announced this week that families separated at the U.S.-Mexico border under the Trump administration may be reunited in the United States or their country of origin. Mayorkas is leading the task force to reunify those families in the coming months.
Now, Mayorkas is also dealing with a challenge on the U.S.-Mexico border, currently. Numbers of unaccompanied children and families continue to increase daily, presenting a challenge to the department as it tries to roll out new policies and manage the influxes at the border.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Josh Campbell.
Congressional Democrats moving forward with gun reform legislation, refiling a bill that's being called the Background Check Expansion Act. Now, this bill would require background checks for all commercial gun sales in the United States. Current law does not require background checks for unlicensed or private sellers.
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Of course, gun reform was a major issue during the 2020 campaign, both for members of Congress as well as for Joe Biden. This move, in pursuit of legislation, represents the first significant step towards gun reform since Democrats took the presidency, as well as both houses of Congress.
Now, finally, it's worth noting that this bill faces an uphill battle, especially in the Senate where Democrats hold a very slim 50-50 majority. In order to get passed, that legislative body's filibuster rules -- it will require significant Republican support.
DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Dianne Gallagher.
The U.S. House passed a massive government reform bill on Wednesday along party lines. HR1 or the For the People Act addresses campaign finance, voting, and redistricting.
Now, on voting, it basically offers protections by requiring states to do things like have at least 15 days of early voting, automatic and same-day registration, and prevents them from prohibiting absentee and curbside voting, among other things.
Now, Republicans have decried this as a great example of federal overreach. Former Vice President Mike Pence even called it a reckless and anti-democratic bill, and that might be a problem once it gets to the Senate. Senate minority leaders have said that they have no interest in taking up this bill. And because of the filibuster rule, Democrats will need Republicans if they expect it to pass.
BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Bill Weir in Brooklyn, New York.
And in her first major speech since being confirmed as the new Energy secretary, Jennifer Granholm promises that no fossil fuel workers will be left behind as the Biden team transitions to a new Industrial Revolution 2.0. This comes as increasing tensions build between the Biden administration and labor unions as they promised these legacy fossil fuel, coal, and natural gas workers cleaner jobs and new industry. The question is whether they can fulfill that promise either by incentivizing industry to pay more. Because right now, solar and wind, while growing industries, are paying the same rates as some of those legacy fossil fuel industries.
Ever since President Biden basically shut down the Keystone XL pipeline, a lot of protesters are hoping he would do the same in Minnesota where a Canadian company called Enbridge is running line three, a controversial pipeline through that state.
But the big question now is whether those promises can be made. A lot of coal miners were promised better, cleaner jobs in Appalachia only to now see those promises ever fulfilled. And now there's plenty of workers from the Permian Basin of Texas up through the shale fields of the Dakotas wondering what will happen to them in this new economy.
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JARRETT: All right. Thanks to all of our correspondents for those reports.
Pricing errors don't get much bigger than $16 billion. And an independent market monitor says ERCOT accidentally overcharged power companies that whopping sum following the deadly winter storm that crashed Texas' electric grid. The market monitor says ERCOT kept prices too high for nearly two days.
Texans were hit with sky-high electricity bills in the wake of that frigid weather. No comment so far from ERCOT.
ROMANS: All right, let's look at markets around the world to end this trading week. Asian shares all closed lower. Europe has opened -- it looks like they're trading mixed here in the early hours of European trading. On Wall Street, futures wavering here, down a little bit but those are not big moves.
It was a tough day for U.S. stocks. The Fed chief Jerome Powell didn't assuage worries about an improving economy sparking inflation and Fed rate hikes down the road, so the Dow fell 345 points. The Nasdaq fell 2.1 percent -- narrowly avoid dipping, by the way, into correction territory.
Powell said while there is improvement in the labor market the work is not done. Economists estimate 182,000 jobs were added back in February. We'll get the official number in a few hours. That would still leave us almost 9.7 million jobs down in the crisis.
Bye-bye sub-three percent mortgage rates. Rates are slowly starting to creep back up. Freddie Mac shows the average 30-year mortgage rate right now topping three percent for the first time since July.
Higher mortgage rates could discourage potential buyers from buying a new home in what has been a hot housing market in the pandemic. Economists at Freddie Mac still expect strong home sales though for the spring selling season, Laura.
JARRETT: Finally this morning, a Minnesota woman hadn't seen her father in his nursing home during the pandemic, so she decided to get a job there. In addition to her full-time job, Lisa Racine now works two or three nights restocking cupboards, mopping floors, and serving food at her dad's nursing home.
She says the work is hard but it's worth it because she gets to spend time with her father. They even got their vaccines together. Love to see that.
ROMANS: Oh, I love that. That is so amazing that she went that extra mile to be able to see her dad. (INAUDIBLE).
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JARRETT: Yes, the lengths that people will go --
ROMANS: I know.
JARRETT: -- just to see their loved ones.
ROMANS: I know. Hopefully, around the corner we'll be able to -- I can't wait to hug my grandma. I say it every week.
JARRETT: I know.
ROMANS: Thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.
JARRETT: I'm Laura Jarrett. Have a good weekend. "NEW DAY" is next.
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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: The White House is making one final push to pass the COVID relief bill through the Senate over the objections of Republicans.
SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI): All I'm trying to do is make this a more deliberative process.
