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New Day

Calls for Cuomo's Resignation; House to Vote on Relief Bill Tomorrow; Jury Selection in Derek Chauvin Trial; Williams Shows Support for Markle. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired March 08, 2021 - 06:30   ET

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

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[06:32:57]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A major blow to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo overnight. The state senate majority leader is now calling for his resignation. She's a Democrat. This comes as three former aides are now accusing him of sexual harassment. Cuomo says he isn't going anywhere.

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GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): I was elected by the people of the state. I wasn't elected by politicians. I'm not going to resign because of allegations. The premise of resigning because of allegations is actually anti-democratic. The system is based on due process and the credibility of the allegation. Anybody has the ability to make an allegation in democracy, and that's great, but it's in the credibility of the allegation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Joining us now is Jesse McKinley, he's the Albany bureau chief for "The New York Times."

And, Jesse, you've been telling us for days that you were watching senior elected Democrats in Albany to see how they would react to what's been going on. And now we have the state senate majority leader coming out and saying she wants the governor's resignation. This has to be a blow.

JESSE MCKINLEY, ALBANY BUREAU CHIEF, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Yes, it's a significant development. You know, Andrea Stewart-Cousins is one of the highest ranking women in the state. She is a Democrat. She leads the Democratic super majority in the state senate. A lot of eyes were on her to see how she would react to the most recent allegations. And then yesterday afternoon, shortly after Governor Cuomo spoke, she came out and said, he must resign.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Now there's also a third aide, a former aide, named Anna Liss, who has come forward to say that she had some of these experiences. She says, a former aide for Cuomo, Anna Liss, told "The Wall Street Journal" that the governor, quote, asked her if she had a boyfriend, called her sweetheart, touched her on her lower back at a reception and once kissed her hand when she rose from her desk. Liss served as a policy and operations aide to Cuomo from 2013 to 2015.

And then there's also this. Look, so there's the allegations of sexual harassment and then there's also the reports of toxic workplace. And so "The Washington Post" wrote about that this weekend. Here's what they said. They talked to like scores of people who had worked for the governor over the year.

[06:35:04]

Many former aides and advisers described to "The Post" a toxic culture in which the governor unleashes searing verbal attacks on subordinates. Some said he seemed to delight in humiliating his employees, particularly in group meetings, and would mock male aides for not being tough enough.

So both those things. I mean the sexual harassment allegations, the toxic workplace, they both seem very moldy in the year 2021. I mean three and a half years after Me Too. And, I don't know, I mean does he survive, in this day and age, when reports of those things are coming out?

MCKINLEY: Well, you know, "The Post" did a great job with that story and we did a similar story about two weeks ago.

You know, the -- the points that they were making, the points that we were making and the points that you are making are all in sync. You know, there is a question of whether or not Cuomo's style, you know, this kind of very abrasive style, is kind of out of step with the current political reality.

But kind of keeping in that, you know, going back to John's remarks, the governor's approach at this point, at this hour, is that he is going to fight this. You know, he is not stepping down. He said, there is no way I'm going to resign yesterday. He has, with the five allegations that have come forward, has basically divided them into two camps. In two cases he said, you know, these are simply not true. In the other three, he said, look, there's mitigating factors, perhaps I was misunderstood or misconstrued. I'm embarrassed by this. So the governor seems to be, you know, parsing not only his behavior, but his reaction to these five allegations, but there's no indication that he's going anywhere.

BERMAN: He's playing for time. It seems like he is playing for time here and wants to wait this out, if he can. I think the only things -- or what would get in the way of that? You have the actual investigation. And I'm not sure we know a timeframe on that. And you would have the possibility of some kind of impeachment proceedings. And you tell me, but there's no movement towards that, is there?

MCKINLEY: Well, as we know from the federal level, impeachment is tough. You know, in New York state, obviously, it would have to go through the assembly. They're not quite there yet according to the -- their leader, Carl Heastie. The Senate seems to be -- the jury -- and it would be the jury in this case, their leader seems to be ready and willing to get rid of the governor. But, once again, it is -- it is still a steep climb to get all those Democrats to defect from the governor, the leader of their party, and say he has to go.

CAMEROTA: Jesse McKinley, thank you very much for all of the reporting, as always.

So now to Washington. President Biden's coronavirus relief bill is set for a big vote in the House tomorrow. So we'll look at how Senator Joe Manchin played a key role in advancing and delaying this whole thing.

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[06:41:46]

BERMAN: Hi drama this weekend over President Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. It's now back in the House for a final vote that will take place tomorrow. This is a hugely significant piece of legislation that will have an impact on the lives of millions of Americans.

CNN's Lauren Fox on Capitol Hill with the very latest for us.

Lauren.

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LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): President Joe Biden is one step closer to his first major legislative victory, with help for millions of Americans at stake.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It, obviously, wasn't easy. It wasn't always pretty. But it was so desperately needed. Urgently needed.

FOX: After a marathon weekend on Capitol Hill, the deeply divided Senate passing Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill on Saturday.

SEN. ALEX PADILLA (D-CA): This is the type of comprehensive, bold action that we've been needing since the beginning of the pandemic and we're finally moving on it now.

FOX: All Senate Republicans rejecting the legislation.

SEN. JOHN BARRASSO (R-WY): This was not really about coronavirus in terms of the spending. This was a liberal wish list of liberal spending, just basically filled with pork.

FOX: Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer slamming his GOP colleagues for their decision.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): I think they don't understand the needs of the country and hopefully now that they've seen we can do it without them, they'll join us and do it with us. FOX: But Schumer also facing challenges within his own party, with two

centrist Senate Democrats showing how their votes could easily allow legislation to sink or swim. The American Rescue Plan Act only passing after ending negotiations with West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin over the tightening of the window for federal unemployment benefits. Now some Senate Democrats are also debating getting rid of the filibuster. That gives Republicans the ability to block legislation without a 60- vote super majority.

SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): I'm supporting the filibuster. I'm going to continue to support the filibuster. I think it defines who we are as a Senate.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Senate is not the Senate of years ago and I think we should be open to changing it.

FOX: But the White House says that's a road Biden would rather avoid, for now.

KATE BEDINGFIELD, WHITE HOUSE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR: His preference is not the end the filibuster. He wants to work with Republicans, to work with independents

FOX: The relief bill will send stimulus checks up to $1,400 to individuals making less than $75,000 a year, and married couples earning less than $150,000, and extend enhanced pandemic unemployment benefits through September 6th. Those payments set at $300 a week.

The House will need to approve the Senate's changes before it lands on the president's desk to get signed into law. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi must maintain her narrow majority in tomorrow's vote, including the support of some progressive Democrats, who may disagree with the changes.

REP. JIM CLYBURN (D-SC): I think that the votes are there to pass what the Senate has done. It doesn't mean that we're in complete agreement with everything they've done.

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FOX: And, obviously, the House will take the final step here in trying to pass this piece of legislation. And while there might be some disagreements between moderates and progressives on specific provisions that are included in this bill.

[06:45:03]

Overall, Democrats are feeling like they can't say "no" to the president's first big push for coronavirus relief.

John.

BERMAN: So, Lauren, we saw what Joe Manchin can do. He held up the process for, what, nine hours on Friday, although, in the end, he gave progressives almost everything they wanted. But going forward, how much influence does Senator Manchin have on the Biden agenda? FOX: Well, I think he's shown time and time again not just on the

coronavirus relief bill, but also what you saw with the president's former nominee for OMB, Neera Tanden, that Joe Biden is -- or excuse me, that Joe Manchin is not going to sit idly by. He is going to have a say in the president's agenda going forward.

And I think that's true of infrastructure, even if they use a process known as reconciliation, the same process they used for this COVID relief bill, Joe Manchin is going to have a say. And I think you're going to see that in immigration, gun legislation. Whatever Biden wants to do moving forward, he cannot ignore his moderates. I think that's the lesson coming out of the weekend, especially when all of his Democratic colleagues were watching very nervously on Friday for about 12 hours as they were waiting to see whether or not Manchin was going to sink this bill. Something that the president has been campaigning on, something that the president worked for months on, something that Democratic leadership thought they had on lock. Obviously, Joe Manchin playing a very key role here, John.

BERMAN: Lauren Fox, keep us posted. Thank you very much.

This morning, Minneapolis on edge as a former police officer charged with murdering George Floyd set to stand trial. Jury selection scheduled to begin today. We have a live report, next.

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[06:50:35]

CAMEROTA: Jury selection begins this morning in the trial of Derek Chauvin, the former Minneapolis police officer who is charged with murder in the death of George Floyd. Prosecutors say Chauvin put his knee on Floyd's neck for nearly eight minutes. The city is bracing for protests and CNN's Omar Jimenez has more from Minneapolis.

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CROWD: No justice, no peace. Prosecute the police.

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A test of police accountability as the trial of Derek Chauvin gets underway, starting with three weeks of jury selection. The former Minneapolis police officer, seen on that now-infamous cell phone video, kneeling on the neck of George Floyd for nearly eight excruciating minutes. He's standing trial for second-degree unintentional murder and second- degree manslaughter, both of which he's pleaded not guilty to, but the first carrying a weight of up to 40 years in prison if convicted. The case is likely to bring protesters and renewed attention to George Floyd. His family remains at the center of it all, balancing grief with the weight of a racial justice movement.

LATONYA FLOYD, SISTER: I just want to say I love him. And this will (INAUDIBLE) my brother's spirit. I thank all of you, everybody. I love you.

JIMENEZ: Now, as the trial begins, preparations are in place on a number of fronts. The intersection became a central place to grieve for Floyd and protest his death has been closed to traffic since last spring.

MAYOR JACOB FREY (D), MINNEAPOLIS: We fully expect our Minneapolis residents to engage in the time-honored tradition of their First Amendment rights and speech, and we want to make sure that that right to protest is protected in every way, shape, and form.

JIMENEZ: And Sunday this city saw just that, many taking to the streets as part of a peaceful protest on the eve of the trial.

But what some protests evolved into over the summer is still fresh on the minds of city officials. It's why they say to expect an increased law enforcement presence over the next weeks, even months, with up to 2,000 National Guard prepared to respond. Not to mention the physical barriers up around the government center where the trial will be taking place.

Then there's COVID-19 protocol. Derek Chauvin will be the only one of the four former officers on trial this spring with Judge Peter Cahill citing the physical limitations of the courtroom. And tied to that, only one member of the Chauvin family and one member of the Floyd family will be allowed in the courtroom at a time. A decision the Floyd family called disappointing according to their attorney, but one that's part of a process many see as a major step toward justice for George Floyd.

PHILONISE FLOYD, BROTHER: My brother screamed, tell my kids I love them, as his soul left his body. I can't stop thinking about that.

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JIMENEZ: And George Floyd's sister, Bridgette, is expected to be the Floyd family representative in court today. Cameras will be in the courtroom, but no prospective or chosen jurors will be shown. Every weekday, now starting today, up until March 26th, jury selection is expected to begin at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time and go until 6:00 p.m., in what is not expected to be an easy process.

Alisyn.

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

So, reaction is already coming in from around the world to the Harry and Meghan bombshell interview, including from tennis great and close friend, Serena Williams.

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[06:58:23]

BERMAN: Tennis superstar Serena Williams showing support for her friend, Meghan Markle, after the bombshell interview with Oprah Winfrey.

Andy Scholes with the latest on the "Bleacher Report." Good morning, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, John.

So Serena and Meghan Markle actually became really good friends after playing on the same flag football team at a Super Bowl event back in 2014. And we've seen, you know, Markle go to support Serena at her matches over the years. Serena, meanwhile, throwing Markle a baby shower. And after last night's interview, Serena posting on Twitter saying, Markle lives her life and leads by example with empathy and compassion. She teaches me every day what it means to be truly noble.

Her words illustrate the pain and cruelty she's experienced. Serena adding, I know firsthand the sexism and racism institutions and the media use to vilify women and people of color to minimize us, to break us down and demonize us. We must recognize our obligation to decry malicious, unfounded gossip and tabloid journalism. The mental health consequences of systemic oppression and victimization are devastating, isolating, and all-too-often lethal.

All right, the NBA, meanwhile, holding its annual all-star weekend all in one night in Atlanta last night. And the league raising more than $3 million for historical black colleges and universities. And the NBA honoring different HBCUs and frontline workers throughout the night.

Now, before the game started, actor Michael B. Jordan chatting with Vice President Kamala Harris. She's a proud HBCU graduate of Howard University. A big basketball fan. She encouraged everyone to get the COVID vaccine when it's their turn.

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As for the game, featured team LeBron versus team Durant. First time ever LeBron and Steph Curry were teammates for a game and it was Steph and Giannis Antetokounmpo.