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The Lead with Jake Tapper

Interview With Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA); Congress Holds Hearing on Capitol Insurrection; Tiger Woods Injured in Car Crash; Biden's Nominees Face Tough Questions in Senate Hearings; White House: States Now Get 14.5M Vaccine Doses Per Week. Aired 4:30-5p ET

Aired February 23, 2021 - 16:30   ET

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

[16:32:43]

JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Welcome back.

We're continuing to follow the Tiger Woods car crash, leaving the golf legend injured in the hospital. We're going to bring you new developments as soon as we learn them, but lots of other things happened today.

Let's go to our national lead.

On Capitol Hill, today, for the first time, we're learning and hearing from law enforcement officials who were responsible for preparation and response to the Capitol Hill insurrection on January 6.

CNN's Ryan Nobles has today's chilling testimony on that insurrection.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the first time, the key players in charge of protecting the Capitol faced a public grilling about what went wrong on January 6.

The questions revealed a number of breakdowns in communication and planning, breakdowns that were in part bureaucratic and others because several agencies just weren't prepared.

STEVEN SUND, FORMER CAPITOL POLICE CHIEF: None of the intelligence we received predicted what actually occurred.

NOBLES: Former Capitol Police Chief Steven Sund admitted his force did not anticipate the overwhelming crush of people on January 6. That lack of preparation led to confusion, as multiple law enforcement agencies and the National Guard were eventually scrambled to the Capitol.

Their delayed response led to even more problems. Front-line officers described how dangerous the situation quickly became.

CAPT. CARNEYSHA MENDOZA, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE: I received chemical burns to my face that still have not healed to this day. I witnessed officers being knocked to the ground and hit with various objects that were thrown by rioters.

NOBLES: Several of the officials blamed the hodgepodge of Capitol leadership for a lack of clear direction of what to do and when. They claimed at certain points they were unaware of who would be the one to make the call to bring in reinforcements.

And in some cases, when they asked, their requests went unanswered.

ROBERT CONTEE III, METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT CHIEF: I was surprised at the reluctance to immediately send the National Guard to the Capitol grounds.

NOBLES: Republican Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley were unironically participating in the hearing, despite their role in spreading the big lie that the election was stolen, which helped fueled the false narrative that January 6 was the last chance to overturn the election.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): What can be done differently to ensure that an attack like that never again occurs?

NOBLES: While the hearing was designed to be a fact-finding mission, some senators made it political. Republican Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin claimed many of those who stormed the Capitol attempted to do so peacefully. He read an excerpt of what he described as an eyewitness account.

[16:35:10]

SEN. RON JOHNSON (R-WI): He said that the mood of the crowd was positive and festive. "Of the thousands of people I would pass or who passed me along Constitution Avenue, some were indignant and contemptuous of Congress, but not one appeared angry or incited to riot. Many of the marchers were families with small children. Many were elderly, overweight, or just plain tired or frail, traits not typically attributed to the riot-prone.

"A very few didn't share the jovial, friendly, earnest demeanor of the great majority. Some obviously didn't fit in."

NOBLES: This despite the panel being in wide agreement that the interaction was more than just a spontaneous mob, but instead a planned and coordinated attack.

SUND: These people came specifically with equipment. You're bringing climbing gear to a demonstration. You're bringing explosives. You're bringing chemical spray, such as what Captain Mendoza had talked about. You're coming in prepared.

CONTEE: I think we're learning more and more and more that this was clearly a coordinated effort.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would agree the evidence would indicate a coordinated attack.

(END VIDEOTAPE) NOBLES: And this is just the beginning of what is expected to be several examinations into what happened on January 6. The Senate Rules Committee Chair, Amy Klobuchar, says that she plans to bring forward officials from both the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI in front of her committee.

And, of course, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in the process of drafting legislation that would form a 9/11-style commission designed to find out what went wrong on January 6 and help to prevent it from ever happening again -- Jake.

TAPPER: All right, thank you so much.

Joining us now, one of the senators who questioned witnesses today, Democratic Senator Alex Padilla of California.

Senator, thanks so much for being here.

I know that, at the time, you were not yet sworn in. But as somebody in D.C. on January 6, let me tell you, you didn't have to be an intelligence agent to know that there might be violence that day from Trump's mob. It was all over Twitter. The president was calling his supporters to come to D.C.

How could this have been missed? How could law enforcement say this was an intelligence failure?

SEN. ALEX PADILLA (D-CA): Right.

Well, that's the big question that went partially unanswered today. It was a question that I asked myself, having had the vantage point of, right, not being in Washington, but watched the split-screen of what was happening in the Capitol on the 6th as the insurrection was developing outside of the Capitol.

Jake, if we stop and try to learn just a little bit from our experience these last 20 years when it comes to foreign terrorist organizations, I think it's easy to see, clearly, intelligence was missed.

There's a lot of finger-pointing today. We will continue the conversation in next week's hearing with intelligence officials, but the Capitol Police did have the information. It was all over social media what was going to happen.

And one of the things I pointed out too was trial runs is my belief, November 14, December 12, known as MAGA 1, MAGA 2, in preparation for the insurrection January 6.

TAPPER: And, Senator, it sounds like you weren't satisfied with the answer you got to the question of, how could they not have seen this coming? What about other answers you got? Were you satisfied with them?

PADILLA: Look, I think the one that was indisputable, I asked the former chief of Capitol P.D., the former sergeant at arms of both the House and the Senate.

Just as most of the nation watched the House impeachment managers lay out the case against Donald Trump, let's put aside the acquittal in the impeachment trial for a second, but the narrative that was recreated, the social media posts, the video footage, not just of January 6, but the lead-up to January 6. Was there anything in that narrative that they disagreed with?

Each of them said no.

So, again, the evidence is there. Now, Donald Trump clearly shares in some of the responsibility here. Some of his enablers who sit on the committee share in the responsibility here. It's both about holding people accountable for the insurrection on January the 6th, and making necessary changes, so this does not happen again in the future.

TAPPER: How confident are you that law enforcement is prepared should another domestic terror attack like this one occur?

PADILLA: Look, I think, if there was an attempt today, they're still not ready.

We need some significant structural changes and resources to better prepare Capitol P.D. and other agencies to prevent an insurrection. Again, that's the reason why the barriers and the razor wire and the National Guard is still deployed in the Capitol area.

So, that needs to change in order to reach that level of safety and confidence to reopen the Capitol. But that's our mission. This is the home of our democracy. It should be completely accessible to the general public, while maintaining the safety of the people who work here and visit here.

TAPPER: Your Republican colleagues Senators Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz participated in the hearing too.

[16:40:00]

As you know, many senators, including Republicans, hold those two responsible for feeding the big election lie and promising to challenge the electoral votes on that day, January 6, thus creating this nonsensical view that somehow the results would be overturned that day.

Hawley today was asked if he felt responsible. Take a listen to his response.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): It's absolutely outrageous and an utter lie. And no one, I think, who knows any of the facts alleges any such thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: Well, you know some of the facts. Do you think Hawley and Cruz are responsible in any way for what happened?

PADILLA: Absolutely.

Like I said, it's not just Donald Trump that must be held accountable but his enablers, including Senators Hawley and Senators Cruz.

Jake, you know that prior to my appointment to the Senate, I served for six years as California secretary of state. So, for years and years, I have been battling the big lie as California's chief elections officer.

We have seen not just the threat and the danger of election disinformation. We saw the deadly consequences of the big lie on January 6, and people must be held accountable.

TAPPER: All right, Senator Alex Padilla, Democrat of California, thank you so much, sir. Good to see you, as always.

Legendary athlete Tiger Woods is in the hospital following a serious car crash in California.

Coming up next, what we know about his condition, the very latest, and how another top golfer is responding to the news.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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TAPPER: We are following the breaking news of golf legend Tiger Woods taken to the hospital in serious condition after a rollover car accident in California earlier today. Moments ago, the Los Angeles sheriff's department said that Woods' car crossed on to the wrong side of the road before the crash and that the road has some winding turns.

The official says the person who lives near the scene is believed to have first reported the accident. "Golf Digest" is also reporting that tiger woods' agent says he has leg injuries and is currently in surgery.

Christine Brennan joins me now.

Christine, Tiger's friend and number three golfer in the world, Justin Thomas, had this reaction. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUSTIN THOMAS, PRO GOLFER: I'm sick to my stomach. You know, it hurts to see one of your -- I mean, now my closest friends, you know, get in an accident. And, man, I just hope he's all right. Just worried for his kids, you know. I'm sure they're struggling.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: That's tough. Woods is 45. Thomas is 27. You have to imagine he idolizes Tiger like most other young golf fans growing up.

You both have been -- you've been covering golf, Christine, most of Tiger's career. Describe the impact he's had on the game.

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Oh, it's been extraordinary. We're on a first-name basis with him. There are young people, as you said, like all these young golfers that have grown up with him, idolized. They haven't known a day where Tiger wasn't in the news or wasn't their role model, or Tiger wasn't a part of our culture. And basically, it's not just golf. It's everyone. The name Tiger, that's only one person and that's why this is such big news.

We've also lived I think, Jake, through the ups and downs of Tiger's career. And there have been some incredible ups and some incredible downs.

And when you think of the comebacks, I mean, he's on comeback three, four, five right now in terms of his personal life and scandal over the years, obviously, injuries. He had multiple injuries. This was his fifth back surgery he just had. And yet, the crowds roar and the fans are there and they can't wait for more because we truly, Jake, have never seen an athlete quite like Tiger Woods.

TAPPER: No. He's an incredible phenomenon.

He was at the top of his game and then had this huge fall from grace back in 2009, 2010 in his divorce. He made a comeback, won the Masters in 2019. And then this, which is just devastating after that career arc, and years, really, of him trying to get his life back together, to say nothing of his golf game.

BRENNAN: Well, it is surprising in that sense. Obviously, it's an accident. We will find out so much more. We will have the answers to what happened here.

Tiger has always been a risk taker. He has always loved the adventure. He was training with the Navy SEALs for a while when he was the number one golfer in the world.

Obviously, he is one of the greatest to ever play the game, one of the greatest, frankly, Jake, to play any game. I said this on an earlier show, for tiddlywinks or World War III, I want him on my side.

The man refuses to lose. He just refuses to lose and he refuses to stop. And yet, there was the calmer, kinder, gentler Tiger we have seen the last few years since the 2017 DU. I think many people will remember the mug shot and the pictures of the dash cam of him trying to walk and the sobriety test. It was very troubling. And from that moment, he came back the highest heights with wining that Masters in 2019.

And for him, the best part of that was having his daughter, Sam, a soccer player, and his son, Charlie, a golfer, right there watching him the way a generation ago, his mom and his dad, were waiting for him when he won the '97 Masters.

TAPPER: Yeah. Christine Brennan, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

Moving on to more news in our politics lead, a rough day on Capitol Hill for President Biden's nominees. Some senators accused Xavier Becerra, nominee for health and human services secretary, to be lacking the proper experience. Another Republican faced off with Interior Secretary nominee Deb Haaland over her past comments on social media, and then, of course, Neera Tanden's hopes of leading the Office of Management and Budget appeared to be all but doomed, as CNN's Phil Mattingly reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Joe Biden's cabinet nominees under partisan fire.

REPORTER: How do you think it went in there?

MATTINGLY: Health and Human Services Secretary nominee Xavier Becerra facing sharp questions over abortion and Obamacare.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will you commit to not using taxpayer money to fund abortions and abortion providers?

XAVIER BECERRA, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY NOMINEE: We will follow the law when it comes to the uses of federal resources.

MATTINGLY: Interior Department nominee Deb Haaland questioned on fossil fuels.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you support a ban on fracking and no new pipelines?

REP. DEB HAALAND (D-NM), INTERIOR SECRETARY NOMINEE: Senator, President Biden does not support a ban on fracking is my understanding.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But do you personally support a ban on fracking and no new pipelines?

HAALAND: Senator, if I can say, if I am confirmed as secretary, I would be serving at the pleasure of the president.

MATTINGLY: And batting away questions about this tweet alleging Republicans, quote, don't believe in science.

SEN. JOHN BARRASSO (R-WY): Do you think believe as medical doctors we don't believe in science? How do you stand by this statement?

HAALAND: Yes. If you're a doctor, I would assume that you believe in science.

MATTINGLY: The seemingly trivial issue of past tweets made less so this week.

NEERA TANDEN, NOMINEE FOR DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT & BUDGET: I deeply regret and apologize for my language and some of my past language.

MATTINGLY: With Biden's nominee to run the Office of Management and Budget on the brink of collapse due to that very reason. The White House sticking by Neera Tanden for now.

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There's one candidate to lead the Budget Department. Her name is Neera Tanden.

MATTINGLY: But in a desperate search for votes after the opposition of Democratic Senator Manchin, with congressional officials telling CNN talks about a replacement are already under way. With zero margin for error in their 50/50 Senate majority, the Biden team keenly aware of the dynamics.

PSAKI: It's a benefit of experience of recognizing the power of any one individual senator or one individual member.

MATTINGLY: And significant work under way to secure Democratic votes for both Haaland and Becerra but also a warning for the looming voters on Biden's cornerstone legislative proposal.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNTIED STATES: We need Congress to pass my American Rescue Plan.

MATTINGLY: House Democrats pushing toward a final vote this week.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll now come to order.

MATTINGLY: But intra-party divides remain over the $15 minimum wage, which opposed by Manchin who proposed an increase to $11 instead.

The White House waiting to see how negotiations will play out but for now, sticking by the $15 level.

PSAKI: He proposed the $15 increase for a reason and he stands by it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MATTINGLY (on camera): Jake, the White House also announced today, that President Biden and the first lady will travel on Friday to Houston, Texas, where a deadly winter storm battered the state. The president making clear last week he wanted to make the trip, was wary of being a burden on first responders. Now they feel they have the capacity to do so, traveling a little bit more in the middle of the pandemic, but the White House still wary about that.

The first bilateral meeting between President Biden and Justin Trudeau of Canada is happening right now. It is all virtual, Jake.

TAPPER: All right. Phil Mattingly at the White House, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

In today's health lead, the Biden administration now says states will get 14.5 million vaccines every week. That's up nearly 60 percent since Biden took office in January. This, as the heads of several vaccine-makers told Congress they're on

track to deliver 200 million more doses in a matter of weeks as CNN's Erica Hill now reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REP. MORGAN GRIFFITH (R-VA): Vaccine supplies remain the number one hurdle in vaccinating Americans at a faster pace.

ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That hurdle front and center at a virtual hearing today with the vaccine makers.

JOHN YOUNG, CHIEF OF BUSINESS OFFICER, PFIZER: We did initially experience problems with the initial run of our vaccine. We will be on track to deliver those 300 million doses before the end of July.

HILL: Moderna, promising the same.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The shortages we do believe we're on track to meet those deadlines.

HILL: Johnson & Johnson's single dose vaccine could secure emergency use authorization from the FDA later this week.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're prepared to ship immediately upon emergency use authorization nearly 4 million doses of our vaccine.

HILL: Beyond production and distribution, questions about protection as new variants spread.

JOHN TRIZZINO, EXECUTIVE VP, CHIEF OF COMMERCIAL OFFICER & CHIEF BUSINESS OFFICER, NOVAVAX, INC.: A new strain to our vaccine is something that we have experience with, and are capable of doing very quickly.

HILL: Pfizer looking at a potential third shot as a booster. And --

YOUNG: We're also in discussions with the FDA to potentially developing an upgraded vaccine against the new variant of concern should it arise.

HILL: Meantime, the White House announcing a boost in distribution.

PSAKI: States will now receive 14.5 million doses this week, up from 8.6 million doses per week when the president took office.

HILL: More states expanding eligibility.

GOV. NED LAMONT (D-CT): Starting next Monday, march 1st, everybody over the age of 55 will now be eligible for the vaccine.

[16:55:01]

HILL: Nationwide, more than 13 percent of the population has that first shot.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It makes me feel better that just knowing that we're at least a little protected.

HILL: Six percent now fully vaccinated, but what does that second dose allow you to do?

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Common sense tells you that, in fact, you don't have to be astringent in your public health measures, but we want, we want to get firm recommendations from the CDC, which I believe will be coming soon.

HILL: While we wait, more signs of pre-pandemic life returning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's great to see them back open and also to be able to come inside for a change.

HILL: In New York, tested, masked fans will be in these seats tonight for the first time in nearly a year when the Brooklyn Nets host the Sacramento Kings.

DR. WILLIAM SCHAFFNER, PROFESSOR, DIVISION OF INFECTIOUS DISEASES, VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: I think the light at the end of the tunnel is pretty bright, but we have to keep vaccinating.

HILL: One more change on the horizon. Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker saying today he wants to phase out online learning for kids in April. He will start with bringing elementary schools back five days a week, follow by middle and high schoolers, noting it's important to get as many kids back into the classroom, Jake, as possible.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TAPPER: All right. Erica Hill, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

Let's bring in CNN chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

Sanjay, so Pfizer, Moderna, Johnson & Johnson pledge to add 240 million doses combined to the vaccine supply by the end of the next month. Is that a significant amount given what the country needs?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: You know, about 65 million now. So, five weeks from now, you know, going to that sort of mid 200 range, it's not what we need, but you get the sense if you sort of follow the trajectory of the vaccines, the supply is still the issue, but it's increasing the pace at which the supply is getting out there.

You heard the numbers going up to 14 million doses per week. I think we're going to see a steady increase there.

So, at some point, Jake, you'll see this inflection point where the supply will no longer be the issue. It will be the administration and actually demand. Will enough people actually want it?

TAPPER: Speaking of supply, I don't know what's going on with Johnson & Johnson. We're told in the coming days Johnson & Johnson could get emergency use for its single-dose vaccine, which so many people have such high hopes for. J&J says they can deliver 4 million doses as soon as that authorization is granted and then 20 million by next month. I have to say, 24 million doses by March seems kind of weak.

GUPTA: Yeah, it's interesting. I spoke to the folks at Johnson & Johnson right before they released their phase three data. What they told me at that time, and I think echoed other places as well, they had been manufacturing the doses at risk for some time. Meaning they're manufacturing without a specific authorization.

So I was surprised as well, that the number is only 4 million out of the gate. I thought that they would be continuing to increase their production. Again, there's a chance they don't get an authorization and that's the at risk part of things.

But why it's going so slow and why there isn't more plans. With Moderna and Pfizer, we had specific plans that we heard where they were going to go, how it's going to roll out. We're not hearing as much about Johnson & Johnson, which will give a sense, they're not anticipating -- it will be out there, but it won't be making as big a dent right away.

TAPPER: And, Sanjay, I just want to note this. Yesterday during the show, we had 500,000 American deaths --

GUPTA: Yeah.

TAPPER: -- from COVID. One year ago today, one year ago today, this was what former President Trump, then President Trump said about the emerging pandemic. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REPORTER: Have you been updated on the coronavirus, sir?

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT: Yeah, we're very much involved. We're very -- very cognizant of everything going on. We have it very much under control in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAPPER: We have it very much under control in this country. Six days later, of course, the U.S. reported its first known COVID death in Washington state. There were more that had happened. We just didn't know them at the time. So many tragic failures to point to, but one of the biggest was President Trump and his administration just flat out lying to the American people about the pandemic and how much they had a hold on it.

GUPTA: No question about it, Jake. Over the last several weeks, I've been talking to many officials from the previous administration who are no longer part of that administration, to really get some of their unbridled thoughts on this. That comes up over and over again.

A couple of things. If you are -- if you feel like you're overreacting in the beginning, it probably means you're reacting just the right amount, just as the nature of an emerging pandemic. But also, you know, I was always struck, Jake -- I think you and I talked about this report that came out of Columbia in May, which basically said at that point, if things had started two weeks earlier, started slowing things down, we could have saved 84 percent of the lives and it would have extrapolated that --

TAPPER: Yeah.

GUPTA: -- you know, in the 12 months since.

TAPPER: Blood on his hands.

Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

Our coverage on CNN continues right now.

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