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North Korea Conducts Missile Test; Israel Holds Fourth Election in Two Years; Remembering Victims of Boulder Massacre; More States Expand Vaccine Eligibility; Nuggets Coach Remembers Victims. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired March 24, 2021 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: You have?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Alisyn.

Administration officials are just downplaying it a little bit. They and the North Koreans -- pardon me, the South Koreans, of course, are saying that the test was cruise missiles, nothing to destabilizing, nothing too significant, fairly routine. Even President Biden, when asked about this, sought to downplay this first test by North Korea during his presidency.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: On North Korea, sir, do you consider that to be a real provocation by North Korea (INAUDIBLE)?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No, according to the Defense Department, it's business as usual. There's no new -- there's no new -- no new wrinkle in what they did.

QUESTION: Do it affect diplomacy at all?

BIDEN: (laughter).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STARR: OK, nothing new in what they did except, of course, it is the first test during his presidency. So what is the message from Kim Jong-un? A lot of people say Kim is reminding the world he's out there, he's got military force. That's the message. He didn't do too much, but he did just enough to remind everyone he is out there.

CAMEROTA: So, Barbara, you also have new reporting this morning about the Biden administration's attempts to communicate with North Korea. So what have you learned?

STARR: Well, you know, we've looked at this for some time. The Biden administration has acknowledged that it reached out to North Korea, trying to see if they could open a channel of communication and there had been silence for some time. There, subsequently, have been some statements by the North Koreans and, of course, now we have this test.

But what was so interesting is yesterday Biden administration officials let it be known that they had talked to the Trump team, the Biden team talking to the Trump team about North Korea, talking to officials who had worked the North Korea problem. They're calling those talks with the Trump team very polite, very helpful, but they were trying to see if there was room left behind for diplomacy. That's really what they're after right now is a diplomatic initiative.

And what they want to do in the Biden team is use China to open that diplomatic door. That may prove to be exceptionally difficult because, as we know, at the same time, the Biden administration sharply critical of China on all fronts but it needs China on North Korea.

John.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Barbara, thank you very much for that.

So, this morning, we have some pictures of a really big problem. This large container ship is blocking one of the world's most important waterways. That's just smack dab in the middle of the Suez Canal. The online monitoring system Tanker Tracker shows the huge backlog it's created, a traffic jam basically, with ships unable to pass in either direction. The 200,000 ton vessel got stuck after strong winds and a sand storm caused low visibility. Sources say the impact on oil and gas flows will depend on how long it takes to clear the ship. They're trying to get tugs in there to pull it out, but it's so big that they're having a hard time moving it.

CAMEROTA: That really is a big problem. You weren't kidding.

BERMAN: It is.

CAMEROTA: You weren't kidding.

All right, we'll keep you posted on that.

BERMAN: It's like standing on end that ship is as big as the Empire State Building.

CAMEROTA: Is that right?

BERMAN: Yes.

CAMEROTA: Also developing this morning, there appears to be no clear winner in Israel's election, its fourth in the past two years.

CNN's Hadas Gold is live in Jerusalem with the latest.

What's happening, Hadas?

HADAS GOLD, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Well, Alisyn, it was a dramatic night last night because initially the exit polls showed that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition with a barely there majority. But then as the votes began to be counted overnight and into this morning, we appear to be at a stalemate.

Now, things could change. There are hundreds of thousands of special absentee ballots that still need to be counted. And though Netanyahu's Likud Party will likely be the biggest party in parliament, he needs a magic 61-seat number for his coalition in order to stay in power. And the path to that number appears to be completely unclear.

Now, Netanyahu ran this campaign much differently than his previous three campaigns. In the past, his relationship with former President Donald Trump dominated the conversation. In fact, Trump's face was plastered on billboards across the country. This year it has been dominated by his successful coronavirus campaign rollout. He's trying to say that he brought Israel back to life hoping that it would overshadow his ongoing corruption trial.

But it's not clear that it was enough. Netanyahu waited until 2:30 in the morning last night to addressed his supporters at his election party where he was not able to declare a definitive victory. And, in fact, the balloons, Alisyn, not managed to drop.

BERMAN: Hey, Hadas, is it possible this would lead, if there is no definitive result, there could be a fifth election in Israel in two years?

GOLD: Yes, and I'm sure that most Israelis would look at you and say, are you kidding, a fifth election? We have to go back again? But, yes, that could be where we're heading because the opposition parties also will have a difficult time getting a big enough coalition because there's such a disparate group of parties, it's not clear they would all be able to sit together. We are essentially at a stalemate here. And if nobody can get together a governing coalition, if nobody can bring forward that 61-seat majority that they need, then they will be heading to a fifth election in a few months.

[06:35:04]

BERMAN: Seems to be working well.

All right, Hadas Gold, thank you very much. Keep us posted, please.

CAMEROTA: So America is mourning the ten victims of the grocery store massacre, including Kevin Mahoney, who just last year, as you can see on your screen, walked his daughter down the aisle.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEBBIE BRINLEY, KEVIN MAHONEY'S NEIGHBOR: Kevin was incredible. He was an incredible father, an incredible spouse, an incredible neighbor. He was just a wonderful, wonderful man who didn't deserve this at all. We're devastated as a community.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: And he was about to become a grandfather. We'll tell you more about the victims, next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: This morning we're getting new information about the ten victims about the grocery store massacre in Boulder. A supermarket manager, a hero cop and a soon to be grandfather all senselessly killed.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty has their stories.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The victims going about their daily lives in a grocery store, customers, employees, some there to get their COVID vaccine.

[06:40:03]

The ten lives lost from all backgrounds and ages from 20 to 65 years old.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our hearts ache for those who lost their lives.

SERFATY: Among them, 61-year-old Kevin Mahoney. His daughter posting a tribute on Twitter to the man she calls her hero. My dad represents all things love. I'm so thankful he could walk me down the aisle last summer, she wrote, adding, I am now pregnant. I know he wants me to be strong for his granddaughter.

DEBBIE BRINLEY, KEVIN MAHONEY'S NEIGHBOR: Kevin was incredible. He was an incredible father, an incredible spouse, an incredible neighbor. He was just a wonderful, wonderful man who didn't deserve this at all. We're devastated as a community.

SERFATY: And 25-year-old Rikki Olds, a manager at King Soopers store, she was raised by her grandparents. Her uncle describing her as charismatic, a strong, independent young woman. A shining light, he says, in this dark world.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She was giggly and bubbly and just didn't -- you couldn't be sad around her. She wasn't having it.

SERFATY: And 51-year-old Officer Eric Talley, a husband, a father of seven, who, within minutes of the first 911 reports of an armed man inside the store, ran into danger. He was the first officer on the scene and then shot and killed.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: When the moment to act came, Officer Talley did not hesitate in his duty, making the ultimate sacrifice in his effort to save lives. That's the definition of an American hero.

SERFATY: Talley had been an IT before becoming a police officer. But at age 40, pursued a career change, joining the Boulder Police force ten years ago.

CHIEF MARIS HEROLD, BOULDER POLICE: And he didn't have to go into policing. He had a profession before this. But he felt a higher calling. He was willing to die to protect others.

SERFATY: His father saying, it didn't surprise me he was the first one there, and revealing he was learning to become a drone operate on the force because the job would be safer.

Talley's police car parked outside the Boulder Police station, becoming a memorial. And the position of his fellow officers honoring him Monday evening.

Boulder Police revealing the other eight victims.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The families of the victims have been notified.

SERFATY: Twenty-year-old Denny Stong, 23-year-old Neven Stanisic, 49- year-old Tralona Bartkowiak, 59-year-old Suzanne Fountain, 51-year-old Teri Leiker, 62-year-old Lynn Murray, 65-year-old Jody Waters. Lives lost, families shattered.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our hearts go out to all the victims killed during this senseless act of violence.

SERFATY: Sunlen Serfaty, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: When you look at all the different people lost, you know, the grocery store is a microcosm of life, right? It is where we all gather, we all collect. We need them. You see the people working there, the community that they formed. And, you know, what you're left with is the sense that this is an attack on life. I mean this is an attack on our life here.

CAMEROTA: Yes, because every single person goes to the grocery store. And we can all relate to this. And the ripple effect of grief from these 10 lives. I mean Officer Talley alone, John, as you pointed out yesterday, he has seven children, aged five through 18, whose lives, obviously, irrevocably changed because of this one moment, one person with a high-powered gun.

BERMAN: He'd be looking -- he'd been looking to change jobs. He'd been looking to become a drone operator on the police force because he didn't want to put himself at so much risk and, you know, he lost his life trying to save people.

CAMEROTA: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:48:00]

CAMEROTA: Want to give you a vaccine update. As of this morning, a quarter of Americans have received at least one vaccine dose. Nearly 14 percent are now fully vaccinated. And Texas, Indiana and Georgia announcing that they will open vaccinations to any resident 16 years and older. They join a growing list of states that are expanding this vaccine eligibility. So joining us now is Dr. Megan Ranney. She's an emergency physician at

Brown University and the director of the Brown Lifespan Center for Digital Health.

Dr. Ranney, great to see you.

So if we pop up the map again, you can see that the states in red are the ones that are going to be offering vaccines to anybody 16 years and older. I mean that seems like a huge victory, but what's going on? Is that because they have surplus vaccine or something?

DR. MEGAN RANNEY, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY: It seems like great news, right? We've all been talking for months now about how we all want vaccines. But here's the thing, those same states that are opening up vaccinations to everybody age 16-plus also have some of the worst rates of getting convenience out.

What that really shows you is that they have low uptake in those states and that they haven't done a great job of distributing them equitably.

What worries me is that when you open it up to age 16-plus, before you've gotten all the older folks vaccinated, before you've gotten all of the people with chronic conditions who are high risk for hospitalization and death vaccinated, it means that you're just going to lengthen the epidemic. We need to focus on getting vaccines in the arms of the people where they'll make the most difference, first before opening it up to all the young, healthy folks that are out there.

BERMAN: What works? I mean If you look at the map of the U.S., where do you think it's working right now?

RANNEY: So it's really interesting. Some of the places where it's working best are a little bit surprising. It's Arizona. It's West Virginia. It's places where they've worked with community groups to get vaccines in the arms of folks to create confidence and also where they've made it easy, where they've created transportation, where they've gone door to door.

[06:50:04]

Those are examples of great partnerships where they've done a really good job of getting vaccines out to those who need it most.

We're still at about roughly 54,000 cases a day. And we have been there for quite a while. We have plateaued at that very high level. We were wondering whether or not we would see a spike. We were hoping we would see a decline. What do you think is happening right now?

RANNEY: I think it's the same race between the variants, especially that B117 variant that was first identified in the U.K., and the vaccines. You know, unfortunately, states are reopening faster than we're getting vaccines in arms. We have lifting of mask mandates. We have the spring break parties down in Florida. Each of those events spreads the virus a little faster. The one piece of good news here is that we have seen hospitalizations

and deaths decline. That means, again, that those older people, the people that are higher risk, are getting vaccinated, but, you know, along with long COVID, just because you're not getting hospitalized or dying doesn't mean it's a good idea to go out and get infected. You could still face long-term health consequences.

BERMAN: Dr. Vivek Murthy, confirmed as U.S. surgeon general, his second stint in the job, the first time around he almost didn't get the job because he had the courage to say that gun violence in America is a public health problem. Talk to us about that because I know this is something you also believe firmly in.

RANNEY: Yes, you know, a little over a decade ago, when I and Dr. Murthy and others started talking about gun violence as a public health problem, we were told, in his almost not-confirmation last time around as an example, we were told that we were silly to talk about it, that we were going to kill our careers.

The reality is, just like we've seen with COVID, with gun violence it is a health problem. We are talking about lives lost, about injuries and about ripple effects on communities. And we can fix it the same way that we have fixed COVID, by doing research. Look at Operation Warp Speed and what we got with vaccines. By looking at data, by creating community partnerships, and by talking about this, again, as a problem that hurts people rather than as a criminal justice or political problem.

There are clear ways to fix gun violence the same way we fixed car crashes or, again, COVID. Unfortunately, some of the political forces out there have kept us from doing that.

CAMEROTA: God, it's so frustrating.

Dr. Ranney, thank you very much. We appreciate this conversation.

RANNEY: Thank you, Alisyn.

CAMEROTA: Whenever you hear there's clear way to fix it, it's very frustrating.

BERMAN: It's a choice. I keep on saying this because it's a choice not to do something, right? We always say, oh, what are they going to find to do? Doing nothing is a choice. And right now they have chosen to do nothing.

CAMEROTA: Meanwhile, the head coach of Georgia Tech's women's team blasts the NCAA for treating the women's tournament as an afterthought. The "Bleacher Report" live from San Antonio explains, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:57:27]

BERMAN: The coach of the Denver Nuggets became emotional remembering the victims of the Colorado massacre.

Andy Scholes live in San Antonio for the women's NCAA tournament with more in the "Bleacher Report."

Good morning, Andy.

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

Denver Nuggets Head Coach Mike Malone just breaking down in tears last night before his team's game when he was speaking about the ten people who lost their living in that tragic shooting in Boulder.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE MALONE, DENVER NUGGETS HEAD COACH: I think about Eric Talley and his seven kids. That's what I think about. And I'm just heartbroken for them and everybody else. And hopefully we as a country, we as a state can find a way to be better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Now, a moment of silence was held before the Nuggets game last night in Orlando before they took on the Magic.

Here in San Antonio, meanwhile, the second round of the women's NCAA tournament is underway. And hours before their game last night, Georgia Tech Head Coach Nell Fortner blasted the NCAA in a statement over the disparity between the men's and women's tournaments. Her statement reads in part, to the NCAA, thank you. Thank you for using the three biggest weeks of your organization's year to expose exactly how you feel about women's basketball, an afterthought.

The NCAA has apologized and upgraded the women's workout facility here in San Antonio after admitting that they fell short. The Yellow Jackets went on to beat West Virginia in advance of the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2012.

Iowa, meanwhile, punching their ticket to the Sweet 16 as well. Freshman phenom Caitlin Clark scoring 24 points in the first half. That was two more than Kentucky's entire team. She finished with 35 points in that win.

And up next for Iowa, a big-time matchup against UConn in the Sweet 16. The Huskies winning their first two games, John, without head coach Geno Auriemma. He had tested positive for COVID and was unable to be with the team in the first two rounds, but he is expected to join them here in San Antonio today and be with them for the rest of the tournament. Yesterday, his 67th birthday. The team called him on Zoom to sing him "Happy Birthday." So hopefully good times for him and UConn the rest of the tournament.

BERMAN: Happy birthday to him. I hope he can play defense because Caitlin Clark can light it up. I mean she was shooting from down town.

SCHOLES: She's really good.

BERMAN: She was really fun to watch.

All right, Andy Scholes, thanks so much.

[07:00:00]

SCHOLES: Yes.

BERMAN: NEW DAY continues right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No motive at this time.

I feel numb.