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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Tension Between School Districts and Teachers Grows Over Kids Returning to In-Person Learning; President Biden Delivers First Foreign Policy Address; Voting Tech Company Files $2.7B Lawsuit Against Fox, Trump Allies; Analysis: More Than 100 Bills Aim to Restrict Voting in 28 States. Aired 4:30-5p ET

Aired February 04, 2021 - 16:30   ET

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

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JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Now, rapid testing could have the potential to ease some teachers' concerns. A new study shows that weekly screenings could slash infections by up to 50 percent in high schools as CNN's Erica Hill now reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MICHAEL OSTERHOLM, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASE RESEARCH & POLICY, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA: We are really good at pumping the brakes after we wrap the car around the tree. What we need to do is anticipate this is coming.

ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fast-spreading variants now identified in more than 30 states. The most common first documented in the U.K. especially concerning.

DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, CDC DIRECTOR: There's increasing data that suggests that some of the variants, the B117 variant, may actually be increased -- lead to increased mortality.

HILL: On Wednesday, the U.S. surpassed 450,000 COVID deaths. For nearly a month, daily reports have been stuck at or above 3,000. Cases and hospitalizations, however, are improving, including a dramatic shift in California where new cases have dropped nearly 60 percent in the last month.

GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM (D-CA): Everything that should be up in relationship to this virus is up. Everything that should be down is down.

HILL: Vaccinations slowly improving. The U.S. now averaging 1.3 million shots a day.

STEVE SOMMER, COVID-19 VACCINE RECIPIENT: It's wonderful. It's great. Flawless. It's perfect.

HILL: New York City launching dozens of popup sites this week. Opening day at Yankee Stadium now set for tomorrow with 15,000 appointments available in the first week. MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO (D-NY), NEW YORK CITY: Having this Yankee

Stadium site up will be a game changer.

HILL: The Biden administration announcing mega sites in L.A. and Oakland, California. A pilot program it plans to grow to 100 sites nationwide.

In addition to partnerships with more than 20 pharmacy chains across multiple states, though experts warn the outreach can't stop there.

DR. ILAN SHAPIRO, ALTAMED HEALTH SERVICES: We need to start vaccinating our community against fear with those of truth.

HILL: Vaccinations at the center of a standoff in Chicago over a return to in-person learning.

MAYOR LORI LIGHTFOOT (D-IL), CHICAGO: We need our kids back in school. We need our parents to have that option.

DR. LEANA WEN, FORMER BALTIMORE HEALTH COMMISSIONER: If we as a society want to prioritize students returning for in-person instruction, the least we can do is to prioritize the health and safety of our teachers.

HILL: Teachers in Chicago also requesting testing. While overall transmission in schools remains low, a new study suggests it could be cut in half with weekly rapid testing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL (on camera): And, Jake, another note on schools, we've learned that the Atlanta public schools, which is one of Georgia's, of course, largest districts, is now considering a four-week session in June to combat the potential learning loss due to COVID-19. It's not clear yet whether this would be mandatory, if it is, of course, that would impact staffing levels. It would impact funding.

But this is one of the ideas that is being discussed right now -- again, to combat some of that learning loss due to the pandemic, Jake.

TAPPER: All right. Erica Hill, thanks so much.

Joining us now to discuss, Dr. Paul Offit. He's a member of the FDA's Vaccine Advisory Commission.

Dr. Offit, good to see you.

So, the CDC director says that vaccinating teachers should not be required to safely re-open schools. You agree. Tell us more.

DR. PAUL OFFIT, MEMBER, FDA VACCINES ADVISORY COMMITTEE: I agree. I think teachers are right that they consider themselves essential workers like others who work in police department, grocery stores, pharmacies, utilities. Many of those workers are also back at work without being vaccinated. I mean, they've done everything they can to try and mitigate the risk, to lessen the risk by masking, physical distancing and other measures. I think teachers fall into that category.

We need to get back to school. I mean, it is indisputable that on-site learning is better than virtual learning, that for certainly children as you know, Jake, in the Philadelphia area, for many children the school lunch is the only decent meal they get during the day. Child abuse is often picked up first in school. We need to get back to school.

TAPPER: So if the schools have taken measures as they have in Chicago with new ventilation systems and PPE and sanitizing stations and the rest, is there any reason why teachers should not go back to school? I'm not talking about ones who have pre-existing health conditions and make it especially dangerous for them to do so, but for a normal adult. Is there any reason for them to not go back in?

OFFIT: No, I mean, the parochial schools in the Philadelphia area are open. I think the public schools which I think face greater challenges, sort of making sure things are safe, have not opened. But, again, with things like this new antigen test which is rapid, which is better able to detect whether or not somebody's actually shedding infectious virus compared to having sort of the viral genes in their throat are all advances that can make this easier.

No, I think there's no reason one can't go back. I agree completely with Dr. Rochelle Walensky from the CDC that one doesn't need to be vaccinated to go back to cool.

TAPPER: There was a question asked about the White House briefing today that basically described it. Obviously, it's much for complicated than this, as having to choose between students and teachers.

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Now, look, we don't want that choice. And obviously, every safety measure should take place, but at the end of the day, when I asked why aren't teachers going back, I'm being told, well, teachers don't feel safe.

It seems to me like we're either adhering to the science or we're not. This doesn't have to do with feelings.

OFFIT: I agree you. If you look at that study in Wisconsin where, in fact, children and teachers were -- there was less transmission in a school setting than in the community setting, there's no evidence that the school setting is more dangerous, arguably, it's less dangerous.

TAPPER: How else can teachers mitigate their personal risk, especially in places across the country that for whatever reason might not take this as seriously as possible? I've seen some videos from Cobb County, Georgia, for example, where the school superintendent didn't seem to be taking it very seriously. And my heart goes out to teachers in districts like that. What should they do?

OFFIT: Well, it's -- this is a virus that's spread by small droplets. If you wear things like the KN-95 mask which is available, easily available, and some have argued if you put sort of a cloth mask on top of that, which makes for a better fit, and then do that associated with physical distancing, then you can dramatically reduce your risk.

You're not going to eliminate it. I mean, the minute you walk outside, there is some level of risk but we need to get back -- get back those essential workers and teachers, certainly an essential worker. So we need them back at work.

TAPPER: Tens of thousands of kids are falling through the cracks as you know. Take a listen to Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot today saying that public schools cannot deny kids the right to have an in-person learning experience. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIGHTFOOT: We need our kids back in school. We need our parents to have that option. It should not be that CPS parents of all the schools in our city are the only ones who don't have the options for in-person learning. It cannot be so that a public school system denies parents that right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: The governor of Iowa signed a bill last week to require all school districts to provide an option for in-person learning. Do you think that's the right mindset here? As long as steps have been taken, new ventilation, PPE, masks, et cetera, schools should open?

OFFIT: Yes, I also think things are about to get much better which should make people feel better. I mean, you have two excellent vaccines out there that are 95 percent effective. You have three more vaccines right around the corner that we'll probably hear about in the next month or two. The weather's going to get warmer which makes it less easy for this virus to be transmitted, you have an administration that cares and is good at modeling good behavior in terms of masking and social distancing.

And also, you have -- you say on CNN that 26 million people have been infected, but that's just people who have been tested to be infected. When you do antibody surveillance studies, that figure is probably off by a factor of three and possibly four. At least 20 percent and as many 30 percent of Americans have already been exposed, meaning they're less likely to get sick. We have 30 million doses of vaccines that have been out there.

I think there are many reasons to believe things are going to get better and better. Yet another reason we can go back to school and feel better.

TAPPER: All right. Dr. Paul Offit, good to see you again, sir. Thanks so much for your time today.

The Biden administration making changes that could affect American troops all around the world. That's next.

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TAPPER: We're back with our world lead.

Moments ago, President Biden delivered his first foreign policy address as commander in chief. The biggest surprise in the speech, a reversal of not just Trump policy but Obama policy. President Biden announced the U.S. will no longer support offensive military operations in Yemen, and will stop selling weapons to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.

Some of which were ultimately used in Yemen's bloody civil war. Also in the speech, more expected, a tougher stance on Russia with Biden saying that the days of the U.S. rolling over to Putin are over. And a freeze on former President Trump's plan to move American troops out of Germany.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins joins me now live.

Kaitlan, let's start with the actions around U.S. troops today. What does this mean moving forward?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is putting a freeze on that Trump-led policy to start to redeploy those troops that were stationed in Germany. About 12,000, roughly, of them, that the president wanted to redeploy to other countries, bring some of them back home. That's the last president, of course, that I'm talking about.

Now, President Biden says he's putting a freeze on that. And that's notable because this is a move that really irritated a lot of European leaders. This has kind of been seen as a cornerstone after World War II.

And so, it also got bipartisan criticism from people who said it was a shortsighted move on Donald Trump's behalf. And so, Joe Biden said that's not going to be happening. He's putting a freeze to that. And so, that's a reversal of Trump's policy.

And really what you saw in that speech today was two weeks -- for two weeks we heard Joe Biden talk about his domestic agenda. And now, President Biden is talking about what it's going to look like with him on the world stage.

TAPPER: And, Kaitlan, it's important to point out just how many of these announcements are clear reversals of Trump plans and policies sending a message not only to allies but adversaries about how Biden plans to approach the next four years.

COLLINS: Yeah, it is. And you're seeing that with the stopping the support for what's happening with the Saudi-led war in Yemen, and with Biden saying this. So, it's not just a reversal of Trump policy, but it's a big reversal because, remember, Congress passed two resolutions that Trump had to veto calling on the U.S. to stop providing weapons to the Saudi-led coalition. And so, this is a big reversal in that sense, but also in a larger

sense where you're seeing all of these military moves that he's taking.

[16:45:02]

Whether it's ending the transgender ban there, talking about the importance of a free press to a democracy which he did today while he was at the State Department, really going out of his way to be effusive in his praise of diplomats -- diplomatic workers at the State Department.

You're really just seeing a complete turn from what we saw during the Donald Trump four years in office. So what he's telling allies and adversaries is that it's going to look a lot different for the U.S. over the next four years in his opinion.

TAPPER: And we should point out as I did at the top the pulling back the U.S. from involvement in the war in Yemen not just a reversal of Trump policy, a reversal of Obama policy. The U.S. first got involved in that war under President Obama. So, that's a big deal for him to pull back from the Trump-Obama policy in Yemen.

Kaitlan Collins, thanks so much. Really appreciate it.

New chapter in the impact of Trump's election lies. Several states now proposing laws making it harder, not easier, harder, for people to vote. That's next.

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TAPPER: In our politics lead, voting technology company Smartmatic has filed a $2.7 billion lawsuit against Fox News, its hosts, Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo and Jeanine Pirro, as well pro-Trump attorneys Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell because of their, quote, disinformation campaign when it came to the election. Smartmatic said they had no choice but to file the massive suit after the many, many lies spread by Trump allies over his loss and how the lies cost Smartmatic's parent company hundreds of millions of dollars.

Giuliani and Powell have also been sued by Dominion voting systems, another voting company, for their spreading their conspiracies and it's possible Dominion will take legal action against Fox as well.

In the wake of debunked claims of voter fraud and record turnout in the last election, many Republican state lawmakers are moving at a rapid clip to put restrictions on voting. According to the Brennan Center for Justice since the November election, more than 100 bills in 28 states aim to limit voting, creating new photo ID laws, purging names from voter rolls. In many cases, these bills could change voting laws in key swing states.

As CNN's Dianne Gallagher reports in our latest installment of "making your vote count." (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Georgia still has voting on its mind.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Senate bill 70 by senators --

GALLAGHER: Just one month after Democrats pulled off a surprise Senate sweep, then three months after President Joe Biden turned the southern state blue, Republicans are reacting with a slew of proposed legislation.

CAMIA HOPSON (D-GA), STATE REPRESENTATIVE: It's definitely a knee- jerk reaction.

GALLAGHER: Nearly a dozen bills that could make it harder to vote have already been introduced in the state senate. A headline-grabbing proposal requiring two copies of photo ID just to vote by mail. Others would end automatic voter registration, use of ballot drop boxes and no excuse absentee voting.

That's something Republican State Senator Burt Jones supports.

BURT JONES (R-GA), STATE SENATOR: I do believe that voting in this country is a privilege and --

GALLAGHER: It's a right.

JONES: It's a right as well. But it ought to mean enough where you could put forth a little bit of effort in trying to cast your ballot.

GALLAGHER: What some call effort, others call suppression.

HOPSON: We see it as a way to keep Democrats from voting easily. In the end, it really hurts everyone.

JONES: We're not taking away anybody's rights but what we are asking is we want a fair and honest election that doesn't have all the allegations that we had in this past election cycle.

GALLAGHER: Those allegations, baseless claims of fraud, were promoted by Jones who was recently stripped of a committee chairmanship following his efforts to undermine the presidential election. That decision made by his fellow Republican, the state's lieutenant governor, who has vehemently defended Georgia's election integrity.

LT. GOV. GEOFF DUNCAN (R-GA): Republicans have a credibility problem right now, because we're having to carry the baggage of all of that misinformation.

GALLAGHER: In a statement, Fair Fight, the voting rights group founded by Democratic activist Stacey Abrams called the bill an unhinged set of voter suppression legislation, appearing to, quote, appease conspiracy theorists like those who stormed the capitol.

But it's not just Georgia. Other states with former President Trump pushed election fraud lies to protest his losses like Arizona and Pennsylvania are also seeing a surge in election reform bills sponsored by Republican lawmakers. In Arizona, one proposal would even allow the legislature to override the secretary of state's certification of the electoral votes.

MYRNA PEREZ, DIRECTOR, BRENNAN CENTER'S VOTING RIGHTS AND ELECTIONS PROGRAM: I think it's pretty clear there are some politicians who would rather put barriers in front of the ballot box than compete for voters.

GALLAGHER: According to the Brennan Center for Justice, so far in 2021, at least 28 states have introduced, pre-filed or carried over more than 100 bills that would restrict voting access. More than triple what was filed this time last year.

One of the biggest targets, according to voting rights groups, minority voters. When elections like in 2020 offer more ways to vote, turnout in communities of color tends to increase, eliminating options and adding extra steps has been shown to decrease participation.

PEREZ: Having one more barrier in front of the ballot box may be a reason why you vote or you don't vote.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GALLAGHER (on camera): Now, of course, these are just bills and proposals at this point. There's a process it must go through. In certain states like Georgia with Republican-controlled state government, it's likely we will see changes signed into law, Jake.

One more point I want to make here, the pendulum swings heavy in the other direction as well. According to the Brennan Center, more than 400 bills have already been proposed or filed this year. That would actually expand access to voting for many people.

TAPPER: The more legal votes, the better.

Diane Gallagher, thanks so much.

GALLAGHER: Uh-huh.

TAPPER: The House about to vote on whether to kick Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene off key committees for her racist and vile comments.

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We'll bring that to you live.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

TAPPER: Finally today, we want to take the time to remember one of the more than 454,000 lives lost to COVID in this country. Panton Adams worked as security at the Masters School in New York but

he did so much more than that. Colleagues say he was always positive. He always had a smile. In 2017, Adams stood outside in the pouring rain to greet every single student on the first day of school.

May his memory be a blessing. You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @JakeTapper. You can tweet the show @TheLeadCNN.

Our coverage on CNN continues right now.

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