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Possible Racial Motives of Suspect Arrested in Shooting Spree of Asian Massage Parlors Examined; U.S. Reaches 100 Million Shots of Coronavirus Vaccine Administered; U.S., Chinese Officials Trade Barbs At First Official Meeting; Soon: Biden, Harris Meet with Asian- American Leaders in Atlanta. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired March 19, 2021 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Million vaccinations reported today. And as of this morning, nearly 35 percent of the population is either partially or fully vaccinated. There is some concern, though, that the U.S. may be on the verge of a new surge. That drop in hospitalizations that we had been seeing, that's now stalled.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going to talk about that coming up.

We're going to start, though, with the fear and frustration in the Asian-American community. Stephanie Cho is the executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice in Atlanta. Stephanie, thank you so much for being with us this morning. How do you feel this morning? How do you feel that your fears and frustrations and the reality that you have lived are being addressed?

STEPHANIE CHO, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, ASIAN AMERICANS ADVANCING JUSTICE- ATLANTA: I think that what I'm seeing is overwhelming support in the Asian-American community. At the same time, we're also seeing quite a bit of backlash. Me as an individual, I've received a lot of hate mail over the last couple of days. I also hear that my other colleagues have as well.

We've also seen so many people with vigils and people have outreached directly to some of the victims' families. And so we do know that there's this overwhelming support as well.

BERMAN: You have received hate mail in the couple of days, since these shootings?

CHO: Yes.

BERMAN: I don't -- yes, what nature of things, and what does that tell you?

CHO: I think what it shows is that the anti-Asian hate has not gone away since this incident. It is still alive and well. And those individuals feel really still emboldened to outreach and to attack Asian women in particular.

BERMAN: What do you want to hear from the president and vice president today, and what needs to be said to them?

CHO: I think I want to hear in the same way that former President Trump consistently called it the China flu, the Wuhan flu, that actually is something that I want the Biden and Harris administration to do differently. Consistently come out and negate that, consistently come out in favor of the Asian-American community, and create policies that really make a difference. For us, I would like to -- I would like to say to them that they need to be consistent in their messaging in the same way that it was so damaging that former President Trump consistently berated and harassed the Asian-American community in his entire presidency.

BERMAN: We -- there was a hearing on Capitol Hill yesterday, and we played earlier Chip Roy turning it into a defense of his rights to criticize the nation of China. And we also heard from Republican Congressman Rodney Davis who had this to say, I think about the type of language you're talking about from the former administration. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. RODNEY DAVIS, (R-IL): It's all political correctness. And that's what the American people are sick and tired of the D.C. bubble wanting to determine what is politically correct and what is not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: So what do you say to people like Congressman Davis?

CHO: I've heard that before. And I think that it sounds also like a D.C. rhetoric kind of situation that he's saying as well. I think racism is alive and well, and it's targeting so many different communities of color. And definitely in the south, being in Atlanta, we see it every day.

And so right now, these attacks are really centering on Asian- Americans, but they've been centering on other communities of color for years. And so when we look at the future, I think it's really to be -- this is the time to speak up. Even if people give you that hate mail, it's time to speak up. Even when there's, again, people at the highest level --

BERMAN: Stephanie Cho. We've been listening to Stephanie Cho there, a leader in the Asian-American community in Atlanta. Let me see if her feed unfreezes there. Obviously -- OK. Stephanie Cho is back with us.

We heard from FBI Director Christopher Wray yesterday say that he has seen no evidence yet, although he wants the investigation to continue, that the attack, in his words, were racially motivated. Now, that is something we had also heard from certain county officials. What's your level of confidence now in the investigation?

CHO: I think that they are still investigating, and I am not law enforcement, so I don't know how they are doing it. But I do feel like it is racially motivated, as does most of the country.

BERMAN: And the whole debate over whether this qualifies as a hate crime or not, how important is that discussion to you?

[08:05:00]

CHO: I think that that's a prosecutorial term, but in terms of is it racially motivated? Yes, it is. Was it targeting particularly Asian- American women? Yes. That is definitely a fact.

BERMAN: Stephanie Cho, we appreciate you being with us this morning. I'm so sorry that you continue to get this hate mail, even in the days after people were murdered in your area. I hope that changes. But thank you for being with us.

CHO: Thank you.

BERMAN: Erica?

HILL: Later today, the Biden administration will hit a milestone, 100 million shots of the coronavirus vaccine in arms in the first 58 days of this administration. Let's discuss now with Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN chief medical correspondent. Sanjay, good to see you, as always.

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

HILL: There was some talk initially, was this a little too much, then it wasn't enough. Look, the bottom line is, 100 million shots in 58 days is a good thing. And John Berman did math this morning.

BERMAN: I did math.

HILL: He did. He double checked it with his calculator. But we're averaging 2.5 million shots a day. We're on a great pace here.

GUPTA: Yes, we could essentially double what the original sort of aspiration was with this, which is great. And people always talk about this idea of trying to get enough immunity in the community, and you are starting to talk about 250 million or so people that you'd want to have vaccinated, or immunized in some way, and remind you that part of it is through the vaccine. Some people do have natural immunity because of previous infections as well. So it is a good pace. And as the weather gets warmer, the virus doesn't transmit as well. So hopefully this confluence of events will start to come together to address the trajectories that we've been seeing.

BERMAN: One chart, though, that concerns me, Sanjay, is the hospitalizations in the United States, because one thing I think you've taught me over the last year is hospitalizations are the one sort of indisputable statistic. It's just a data point. And cases lead to hospitalizations, hospitalizations lead to death. And you can see that hospitalizations dropped a lot every day for weeks and weeks and weeks. They're not dropping anymore. It's leveled off. It's static, and maybe the first signs of an uptick there. How concerned are you about this?

GUPTA: Well, I'll say that I hope that's not the case, obviously, as everyone else does as well. The reason hospitalizations are so important is because with regard to testing, cases overall, we're still not doing enough testing, so it's hard to know really how many people are diagnosed positive at any given point. And hospitalizations, obviously, so crucial for communities because if they become really overwhelmed, then that was the whole flatten the curve thing. It becomes harder for hospitals to be able to function.

So we've got to keep an eye on this. I've got to say that the vaccinations, especially vaccinating people who are the most vulnerable to getting sick and hospitalized, that has also been a bright spot in the sense that a third of people over the age of 65 now are fully vaccinated. Two-thirds have received at least some immunization. So by the end of this month, hopefully we'll be closed to two-thirds fully vaccinated. Those are the people most likely to be driving those hospital numbers up.

So we're going to have to see. Do hospital numbers go up? Do they go up at the same proportion of cases as we've seen in the past? We'll have to see. I hope not. Again, John, it's been keeping it real over the last year, but I think when there has been optimistic news to share, I think we want to share that as well. I'm still optimistic going into April and May that we're going to get, as you point out, enough people vaccinated, and that hopefully these hospital and death rates don't go up proportionally, even if cases do.

HILL: We'll do the glass half full one on that. I'm with you on that, Sanjay. Also some encouraging news, I think, for a lot of parents out there is to see this new CDC guidance, right, that you can safely be back in school with three feet of distance, and masks, as opposed to six feet. This could really be a game changer.

GUPTA: One of the big challenges for school districts across the country as we've been reporting on this was just how do we get the square footage to be able to do six feet of distancing for people? So this could go a long way. And I think it's part of the reason the CDC decided to change these guidelines in response to a study that came out of Massachusetts. Basically, in this Massachusetts school district, they said you should distance six feet, but if you can only do three feet, we'll allow that as well. And then they basically looked at the data, and they said they didn't find big differences between schools that had done three feet versus distancing versus six feet of distancing. There wasn't increased viral transmission. There wasn't increased county hospitalizations, so that was good news.

But there are still caveats here, right. Obviously for schools, that means they're going to put more people into a classroom. Are they going to still ensure that you have good enough ventilation in those places?

[08:10:6]

Our reporting has shown that 41 percent of school districts around the country needed upgrades to their ventilation, either big wholesale ventilation changes like with their HVAC systems, or smaller changes, but that's going to continue to be a priority, obviously, masking going to continue to be a priority, all those things.

So yes, great news. I think it's going to open the door for a lot of schools to be able to reopen. But don't forget the basics still -- masks, ventilation, all of that.

BERMAN: The masks are huge in this case. It's only three feet if you're wearing a mask.

Sanjay, you starred on Jimmy Kimmel live earlier in the week. You star here on CNN every day. Now you're expanding your entertainment portfolio. I understand you've done a PSA for Warner Media. I haven't seen it yet, but I've been told reliably it may very well be the most amazing piece of video I'll ever see, so let's play it.

(LAUGHTER)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVEED DIGGS, SONGWRITER: Sanjay, you there?

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Daveed.

DIGGS: I'll make this question. Listen, I have some questions.

GUPTA: What's on your mind?

DIGGS: This vaccine, I'm nervous. I've got songs to write. Will I still be able to do that?

GUPTA: It will be fine, Daveed. Science is what you need. The vaccine is safe, my friend. It's going to bring this pandemic to an end. See what I did there?

DIGGS: Yes, OK. I trust you, thanks. Oh, and Sanjay, don't do that again.

GUPTA: Daveed? Daveed? I don't know. I thought I was spitting fire.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

HILL: You know what you needed? Your accordion.

(LAUGHTER)

HILL: I think that would have really sold it. We've learned a lot about your talents this year, Sanjay.

BERMAN: That was fantastic.

GUPTA: Look, I'm --

BERMAN: Go ahead. Explain yourself.

GUPTA: I'm just trying -- I'm a -- that was a Warner Media PSA. I'm a company guy, and we're trying to reach people where they are.

(LAUGHTER)

HILL: I love it actually. I think it's fantastic.

BERMAN: I think it's wonderful. I think it's wonderful. Obviously, it was with Daveed Diggs, "Hamilton" star, played Jefferson, right?

HILL: Huge, yes.

BERMAN: Thomas Jefferson. Look, you were great.

GUPTA: I think he was truly upset. I don't think he was acting. I think he was truly upset when I tried to rhyme.

BERMAN: You actually really offended him. He was deeply offended.

HILL: He was probably star struck, Sanjay. That's all it was.

BERMAN: Good for you.

GUPTA: I'm pretty sure it was not, especially not after the rhyme.

BERMAN: No limits. No limits.

HILL: Can I ask you one quick question, even though we're out of time? I thought it was great. Are your kids still talking to you after that?

GUPTA: No, they're not.

(LAUGHTER)

GUPTA: There are so many reasons my kids have not been talking to me. I just keep adding to those.

HILL: We'll still talk to you.

BERMAN: We're here for you, Sanjay.

GUPTA: Thank you.

BERMAN: Thanks for being with us.

GUPTA: You got it.

BERMAN: That was hilarious.

HILL: Awesome.

BERMAN: So, a diplomatic display the likes of, honestly, we haven't seen for generations. Public, very public, very personal feuds between the United States -- there's U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, with both China, in his case, and also a personal back and forth with Russia out in public for the world to see. We'll show it all to you and talk about why this is happening, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:16:42] JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: So, big clues in just the last 24 hours on how the Biden administration plans to deal with both Russia and China. The president himself speaking out calling Vladimir Putin a killer. Then, Secretary of State Tony Blinken angered Chinese diplomats when he kicked off a photo-op calling out China's human rights abuses.

This is how the Chinese diplomats responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

YANG JIECHI, CHINESE COMMUNIST PARTY FOREIGN AFFAIRS CHIEF: On the Chinese side, felt compelled to make this speech because of the tone of the U.S. side. Isn't this the intention of the United States, judging from what -- or the way that you have made your opening remarks, that it wants to speak to China in a condescending way from a position of strength?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Joining us now, David Sanger, CNN political and national security analyst and "New York times" White House and national security correspondent.

So, David, the common thread or a common thread, these were both very public disputes between Russia and China, the likes of which we really almost never see. They're also, in my mind, intentional. I mean, you don't do it publicly unless you mean to do it for a reason. So, why? What is the Biden administration trying to do?

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND ANATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, I think there are a few things going on here, John. The first is that the Biden administration is trying to establish both for its home audience and abroad that it's not going to be a push-over here. And I think you saw that in the president's tone about Vladimir Putin being a killer. The subtext of that is the days of Donald Trump apologizing for or ignoring what the Russians were doing are over.

With the Chinese, I think it's a little more complex. The Chinese weren't really sure they wanted to have Trump stay around. I suspect they probably preferred Biden to some degree. But the degree of aggressiveness by the Chinese in the past few years from the South China Sea to the cyberattacks on the U.S. to Hong Kong, where they were oppressed, freedoms that were guaranteed under the handover agreement with the British. I think made the administration think it's got to start off this way.

The question is, once the cameras went away, was there a more real conversation? And we don't know that yet.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: And they have certainly set it up. Secretary Blinken calling this relationship with China the biggest geopolitical test of the 21st century. As we wait to learn a little more, hopefully about what happened behind the scenes, I mean, how was the stage set, not just for that relationship, but for the message that it sends to the rest of the world? SANGER: Well, I think that the hard part for many in the United

States here about this is that we've gone through two years -- two decades of dealing with counterterrorism, the Iraq war, the Afghanistan war, the efforts to get out of that. And we thought that superpower conflict was kind of asleep.

And clearly that's not the case. You have got two very different kinds of powers that we're dealing with here, Erica.

In the Russians, a disruptor, a country that can't produce very much, still very dependent on oil and gas for its revenues.

[08:20:06]

But basically has found its role by disrupting what the United States and NATO are trying to do.

In China, it's a completely different case. The Chinese are a rising power. They look at January 6th and they say more evidence that the United States is so divided that it won't get its act together and that China will emerge in a number of years or decades as the biggest economic, political and military power in the world.

And I think that what you saw with Secretary Blinken was an effort to sort of push back at that. At one point he said outright, don't count out the United States.

BERMAN: Look, you say China is assuming that the United States is divided in ways that are irreparable. I think one area where there is increasing unity between Democrats and Republicans is China in attitudes toward China.

Josh Rogin gets into this in his new book. He points out the assumption that it existed in some liberal -- and I don't mean like politically liberal. I mean national security liberally thinking, that it would change its behavior as its economy opened up. Nobody believes that anymore. There's wide agreement that all China wants to do is dominate politically, militarily and economically around the world.

So this might be a moment of unity in terms of the U.S. policy toward China.

SANGER: I think you are exactly right, John. And the days for the Democrats of believing that the onset of the Internet and so forth would liberalize China and basically erode the power of the Communist Party, that's done with.

I mean, I remember going to China with bill Clinton where he'd get to go speak to university students, and he would say the Internet is your ticket to Western-like freedoms. Clearly that is wrong.

The question now, though, is what leverage do we have to go push back? And what I think is interesting about the Biden administration is that while Trump tried to contain the Chinese, stop Huawei, the communications company from putting 5G around the world and so forth, I think the view of the Biden folks is, we have to outcompete them. And that may require a fair bit of public investment, as well as

private investment as well.

BERMAN: Also, it involves relationships with Japan and South Korea, which the U.S. has already started to repair which really did seem to upset the Chinese as well.

This is really important stuff. Complicated but super important. David Sanger, appreciate you coming on and helping explain it.

SANGER: Great --

BERMAN: As important as it was, we're done with him.

HILL: Today, President Biden heading to a battleground state that helped deliver him the White House. Hear what Georgia voters have to say about the job he is doing so far. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:27:04]

BERMAN: Just hours from now, President Biden and Vice President Harris will arrive in Georgia. They'll try to reassure an Asian- American community frightened by the deadly attack on three Atlanta area spas. This is the president's first visit to a state that played a big part in his election victory and was everything in terms of the Democrats taking over the Senate.

Chief national affairs correspondent Jeff Zeleny live in Atlanta.

Good morning, Jeff.

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, good morning, John.

There is no doubt that Georgia played a key role in the election of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, but it played an even more important role in their agenda so far, namely, that American Rescue Plan.

Now, the president and vice president were planning on holding a rally here in Atlanta this evening to talk about the benefits of that plan. They did change their plans because of the shootings here this week in Atlanta. They'll be meeting with members of the Asian-American community.

But at the two-month mark almost of the presidency, we talk to Georgia voters about what they think about the Biden administration.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MARIAMA DAVIS, MANAGER, THE BEEHIVE: You still just feel the relief in the air.

ZELENY (voice-over): Mariama Davis is watching President Biden's first two months in office with hope and gratitude. DAVIS: We actually are about to head back to somewhat of a normal

situation that we were used to before. So, honestly, I'm satisfied.

ZELENY: She's among the voters who not only helped him carry Georgia but helped Democrats win control of the Senate, a triumph that paved the way for Biden's agenda.

Inside the Beehive, an Atlanta boutique her sister owns and she manages, Davis is already feeling the effects of the American Rescue Plan.

DAVIS: This week alone, we have been gloriously overwhelmed by the numbers we've had.

ZELENY: Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are visiting Georgia on Friday, the first time since taking office, a trip to promote the COVID relief bill taking a somber turn as they cancelled a rally and instead will meet with Asian-American leaders after a rampage here this week killed eight people, including six women of Asian descent.

The White House has stopped short of calling it a hate crime, despite calls to do so.

BIDEN: It is very, very troubling.

ZELENY: For Biden and Harris, there is no state like Georgia.

BIDEN: One state -- one state -- can chart the course not just for the next four years but for the next generation.

ZELENY: In November, Georgia went blue for the first time in a quarter century.

SEN. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D-GA): Well, hello, Atlanta, Georgia!

ZELENY: In January, that win made sweeter for Democrats after Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff swept their run off races ending Republican control of the Senate.

NSE UFOT, CEO, NEW GEORGIA PROJECT: I shudder to think what would have happened if Georgians not come out in historic numbers and flipped the Senate.

ZELENY: Nse Ufot leads the New Georgia Project, a voter registration group. Her jubilation has been tempered by backlash as Republicans are trying to pass new laws to make voting more difficult here. She hopes Biden will prioritize federal election reform which may only happen by eliminating the Senate filibuster.

UFOT: I think the president could clearly and forcefully say there are no both sides to this debate.