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Don Lemon Tonight

14.9 Million Texans in Water Crisis; Biden to Sign Major Disaster Declaration for Texas; About Half of Texas Population Experiencing Water Crisis; Biden to the World, America is Back; Lindsey Graham as Peacemaker Between Trump and McConnell; Interview with Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX); Nine Alleged Oath Keepers Charged in Conspiracy to Attack Capitol; Rioters Charged Not All Getting the Same Treatment; GOP Filing Bills to Restrict Voting Access; CNN Original Series "Lincoln: Divided We Stand" Airs on CNN. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired February 19, 2021 - 23:00   ET

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

[23:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN HOST: This is CNN Tonight, I'm Don Lemon. The White House says that President Biden is ready to sign a major disaster declaration for Texas with much of the state paralyzed by the weeklong winter storm catastrophe. At least 26 people are dead. More than half the population is scrambling for water.

In Houston low water pressure threatens hospitals and firefighter's response. While power plants are backed up, some 125,000 families and businesses are still without power on another night of freezing temperatures in many areas. One crisis on top of another for the people of Texas. And CNN's Omar Jimenez has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): So, you've never even used your fireplace before this?

UNKNOWN: Oh, no.

JIMENEZ: Jenn Studebaker and her family in Austin Texas were burning chairs. Pieces of bookshelves before eventually scavenging for bits of wood without even a means to cut it.

UNKNOWN: That hammer is actually what we were splitting wood with.

JIMENEZ: Using their nearly abandoned fireplace now as a means of survival.

UNKNOWN: We're using the head of a Bhutan bed and put it right here.

UNKNOWN: To get closer to the heat.

UNKNOWN: To get closer to the heat and I will sleep right here. So, we we're all just kind of be huddling together.

JIMENEZ: Restless from a new mentality they've now had to adopt.

JENN STUDEBAKER, AUSTIN TEXAS RESIDENT: Everybody is just you know, thinking like, if we just make it one more day. Just get one more day. And it's like what if it happens again tomorrow and now we got to -- we can not burn all of this.

JIMENEZ: And even though the powers on.

STUDEBAKER: The water is not even bubbling. Nothing.

JIMENEZ: The water isn't. And it's not just Austin, as they are amongst the millions across Texas under a boil water advisory. In Houston, miles of long lines to pick up water at mass distribution sites.

In San Antonio, this apartment complex burned to the ground as firefighters struggled to get enough water to fight it.

UNKNOWN: Our main concern is water supply. All these hydrants out here are dry. There's no (inaudible) they are just frozen, there's' no water.

JIMENEZ: Even members of Congress forced to get creative.

UNKNOWN: I'm going to fill my toilet with water so that I can be ready for later today.

JIMENEZ: Without water in her Houston home, Congresswoman Sylvia Garcia collected rainwater to flush her toilet. And hospitals are struggling to care for an influx of patients amid an ongoing pandemic.

ROBERT SALDANA, MEDICAL DIRECTOR OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE, HOUSTON METHODIST HOSPITAL: As more of our area hospital were without power and water, many of their patients ended up at our facilities.

CHIEF CANDE FLORES, ABILENE FIRE DEPARTMENT: Earlier the day we had a situation were an elderly female walked out of her home, and she was found in her backyard deceased and that was greatly related to the weather conditions.

JIMENEZ: Emergencies merging and leaving those already affected by the pandemic wondering where to go next.

STUDEBAKER: I lost half my income. And then, finally we are getting here. What are we going to do? We can barely live here. Sorry. It's like you just keep going and going, and just this whole year, just keep going. And if we just make it one more month, then my tax return will come in, or we'll get some funding. I can't pay my utility bill. So, just let us have the tiny apartment, that's all I'm asking. And maybe some water. That would be nice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JIMENEZ: And water is that next frontier. Officials at least in Austin are optimistic that they will be able to get it restored by the end of the weekend. And on the electricity front, across the state, we are in a much better place than we were even just a day ago, again with at least here on Austin, 97 percent of power being restored.

And the good news overall is that tonight seems to be the last night of freezing temperatures we are going to see this week, giving Texans this weekend a chance to play offense.

LEMON: Yes. A little break. And speaking -- listen, it's obvious from what you have been reporting that all had been reporting that they need help. The president says he intends to sign a major disaster declaration Omar, for Texas? What do you know about that?

JIMENEZ: That's right. President Biden has said, he intends to sign a major disaster declaration for Texas as soon as it's in front of him. And as we understand what it would do essentially is allow Texans to provide or to apply for individual assistance from FEMA. Now Texas Governor Greg Abbott said at least this afternoon he was still waiting to hear from the federal government on that. But it is being accelerated by the White House. That's our understanding.

[23:05:09]

On top of that, President Biden says he does play to get out here to Texas, likely at some point next week, but he doesn't want to be a burden on the people here recovering already. People who are (inaudible) of the week where they have literally been fighting for their lives on their own homes.

LEMON: Omar, thank you so much. I appreciate that.

JIMENEZ: Of course.

LEMON: I want to bring in now Democratic Congressman Colin Allred. He represents Texas 32nd congressional district. Representative, thank you for joining us. I appreciate it. It's good that you're -- it looks like you're doing OK. We're going to talk about that, though. People are in desperate need for water and food tonight. Marginalize communities of color, they are hit really hard, many without resources to get help. What is being done to make sure they're not last in line?

REP. COLIN ALLRED (D-TX), FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: Well, thank you, Don, for pointing that out. This is a crisis just like the COVID crisis that has not hit our communities equally. Homes that were the least able to deal with weather like this are the ones that are the coldest. Folks who lost their power tried to burn whatever they could in their homes.

And we've seen far too many we've lost to carbon monoxide poisoning. And so, I'm working with FEMA to make sure that we send out mobile units into these communities to try and help as much as we can, to make sure folks know what the benefits are they have available to them, and to do anything we can to answer any questions. Because this is a critical time.

LEMON: I know -- I understand you've been communicating with FEMA. What are they doing on the ground to get folks help there?

ALLRED: Yes, the biggest thing right now is potable water. Because so much of Texas is under a boil your water advisory or their pipes have burst, and they don't have water pressure and the ability to get any water in their home. And so, getting bottles of water out is the top priority. As of yesterday, FEMA distributed over 1.2 million bottles of water in Texas.

I think today they surpassed that by quite some bit. So that is going to continue. But also of course, blankets, generators where necessary, really just trying to support the state in terms of getting people through this.

LEMON: As you know, Ted Cruz is in Houston. I want to ask you what you think about him flying off to Cancun. You can answer that if you want, but what kind of help would you like to see Ted Cruz, because you work in Washington, he works in Washington, and I'm sure the folks there need both of you guys as national leaders to help. What can he be doing to help Texans?

ALLRED: You know, I think about someone like Barbara Jordan who came from Houston, and what she would be doing right now. And she would be spending, like I'm trying to, every single hour of everyday trying to do whatever you can to draw down federal resources. To help local folks with any issues they might have, to try and spread best practices, to tell folks what they can do to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

To what they can do and where they can go to get water that they can drink. There are so many things that United States Senator could be doing. And I think this is just an example of sort of the arrogance and the callousness really that we've seen from some of our state-wide leaders through his crisis.

You know, from that to our Governor suggesting that this is because of the green new deal and windmills. I mean, this is not a time to be doing things that are in your personal interest, whether trying to get away on a vacation or try to press your political agenda.

LEMON: At least 26 people have died, Congressman in Texas. Some of them in their own homes trying to stay warm. How can we make sure that a catastrophe like this never happens again? I'm sure that goes with winterizing, the resources, and so on.

ALLRED: You know, Don, this is really the result of ignoring suggestions that were made 10 years ago, when we had a similar cold snap come through Texas. We also had some blackouts then. There were suggestions made by the federal regulatory agency looking out what happened in Texas that said these are things you need to do to winterize your grid. Those things were not done and of course, we have this blackout and now you're seeing the deadly results.

So, now we have to learn those lessons here I Texas. We have to winterize our grid. Yes, every single source of energy went off-line, from renewables to our thermal sources. But in Iowa, when it gets cold, the wind still works, the wind power still works. In Alaska, when it gets cold, the natural gas still flows. You can do that, you just have to prepare.

LEMON: Representative Allred, I appreciate your time, stay safe, stay warm.

ALLRED: Thanks so much, Don. Thanks for covering this.

LEMON: So, I want to bring in now Dr. Schuwan Dorsey, who lost both power and water. And also Pastor Walter August Jr. of the church of Bethels Family in Houston. Good to see both of you. Thank you so much for joining. I really appreciate it.

[23:10:00]

Dr. Dorsey, I'm going to start with you. I know it's been a brutal week for you.

SCHUWAN DORSEY, WHO LOST BOTH POWER AND WATER: Yes, sir.

LEMON: Cold nights with no water. And now you're afraid your pipes are going to burst if you turn on that water. We have a photo of your neighbor's collapsed ceiling from a burst pipe. How are you guys doing? How are you dealing through all of this?

DORSEY: Well, of course, Don, thank you for having me on tonight. Yes, I'm here for the community. It has been very stressful over these last four days. The power went off Monday morning at 6:30, as you stated, I'm afraid to turn on my water and the water pressure is so low. Anyway, with the other neighbors, that you can't even take care of the necessities that you need to do.

LEMON: You had to sleep in your car for a couple of nights during the outage? Is that how you stayed warm?

DORSEY: Yes. That is correct. Myself and my two dogs.

LEMON: That's dangerous.

DORSEY: We stayed in the car, and every hour on the hour, I would turn the car back on to get the heat. And my life alert, I wear a bracelet, it was offline because the electricity was off. So I was in danger with my health. I called center point several times. I called ERCOT several times.

Center point did a script, every person I talked to said the same thing. And they can never give you a time when the power would be restored. We had power I think on for three minutes, on that Wednesday. At 12:12 a.m. I ran back in the house from the car, set the clock on the oven and then it went back off.

LEMON: Wow. And so you still have no idea when you're -- you have power now, right? But you don't know -- well, at least, I think it's going to be warmer so you maybe be able to turn your water on over the weekend, hopefully that will happen.

DORSEY: I'm hoping. I'm hoping that I'll be able to do that. Because right now, the water is off.

LEMON: Pastor, let me go to you now, because you're a minister and you like to give back. Your ministry likes to give back. How has this all impacted the community, and the people there, and what are you going to do to help?

PASTOR WALTER AUGUST JR., THE CHURCH AT BETHEL'S FAMLIY: Thank you again, Don, as Dr. Dorsey said, for allowing us to be able to express and also speak for those who have no (inaudible) we've been working in (inaudible) to make sure people had (inaudible) it's been very (inaudible) as a pastor of a church, but we are always on the front line serving people. Over the last 15 years, from hurricane Katrina, from New Orleans to Texas, we were on the front line.

Hurricane Ike in 2008. You know, from there to Harvey, 2017. And all in between. And even the hurricanes that devastated the Lake Charles area, we were on the ground to help support them. It's been frustrating for me as a pastor, because we are life-giving ministry that operates pretty much seven days a week.

Even through 2020, we could not shut our doors down in the midst of this pandemic because tens of thousands of people depend on that organization every month just to make sure there is food on their tables. And any other services we can provide. It's been frustrating, because our power at our empowerment center, where we have the largest food pantry in that region, no zip code restrictions. If people are hungry, whatever they need, we try to give everything away. Because it's vitally important at times like this that we all kind of forget about who we think we are, and again to look at humanity and then start serving at an all-time high.

LEMON: Listen --

AUGUST JR.: It's frustrating because also there are parishioners in my church that I pastor that I couldn't help, that I couldn't reach out, couldn't get what they needed. And that's very frustrating for me.

LEMON: Well, that's because the conditions are so treacherous that they can't get to you and you can't get to them. But I have to ask you, because, listen, the community is -- this has impacted millions and millions of people. You're a pastor, and I know that is part of being a leader there. Who is responsible here? Who do you guys hold accountable, and what do you plan to do after this? Someone has to be held accountable for this, because you don't want it to happen again.

AUGUST JR.: Well, Don, I'm not into the political arena as to who push what button, and who make decisions. I launch from --

[23:15:-5]

LEMON: Well, let me ask you this way, a better way. And you're right about that, you're not a politician. What would you like to see corrected so that this doesn't happen again?

AUGUST JR.: Well, one of the things I can tell you what we're going to do, one of the first things we are going to do when we get in our office on Monday with our staff. We're going to go head begin to rally to bring in commercial sized generators and attach them to all of our facilities. And I would even start a campaign, every essential facility that served people, whether its food, clothing, or emergency shelters, we all have to begin to put a personal generator -- commercial generator to keep our business operational.

Regardless of who make a decision to do a black rollout, whatever, at least our facilities will stay open to serve the people in the midst of any tragedy. So, that's something that we're going to do. And I do believe they ought to have some conversations about what is going to happen to the next one, because we can prepare for the next one. But, you know, Don, like everything else, after a couple of weeks, a month down the road, that's when --

LEMON: People (inaudible).

AUGUST JR.: And we move on to something else.

LEMON: Yes. I want to bring Dr. Dorsey back in. I'm going to give you the last word. Same question to you, what do you want to see happen after this? I have to get to the commercial break, I apologize in advance. But go on.

DORSEY: I don't want to see it happen again. Like I said, in 2011, we dropped the ball. I want our higher officials to take care of this, because you don't know what it was like to be without power for almost four days.

LEMON: Well, let's hope they are listening to you.

DORSEY: (Inaudible) is still suffering over here.

LEMON: Well, Dr. Dorsey, listen, I hope that you're able to turn your water on. I'm sorry you have to deal with this horrific. Pastor, thank you for doing what you do.

AUGUST JR.: Thank you, Don.

LEMON: And thank you both for appearing. Good luck.

DORSEY: Thank you.

LEMON: President Biden going full speed ahead, undoing his predecessor's agenda, but will he run into trouble with a key nomination? Neera Tanden, is supposed to have the Office of Management and Budget, we shall see if that happens.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think we are going to find the votes to get her confirmed.

UNKNOWN: You're not going to pull her nomination?

BIDEN: No.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK, so President Biden is setting a clear path for America's foreign policy reaffirming his commitment to our allies while taking quite a few digs at the former president.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: America is back. The transatlantic alliance is back. And we're not looking backward. We are looking forward together. Our partnerships have endured and grown through the years. Because they're rooted in the richness of our shared Democratic values. They're not transactional. They're not extractive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, I can't imagine spending a Friday night with any other than these guys. CNN's senior political analyst, Ron Brownstein, and Mark McKinnon the former adviser to George W. Bush, and the executive producer of The Circus. You know that little show that runs on ShowTime about the craziness that goes on.

Hi, gentlemen. Ron, Biden telling our allies that America is back in pushing ahead on fighting the coronavirus. And he is unveiling a sweeping immigration plan. It is a complete undoing of the former administration's approach.

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes. Right, I mean, look, this is about as head snapping a reversal of course as we've had over the county's direction, over a single election. I mean, Trump took the national agenda so far to the right on so many fronts and now you have Biden trying to reverse direction. And you know, look, he's going to have, in some ways, the dog that isn't barking is kind of the loudest sound in Washington.

I remember certainly in 2009 the enormous gyrations that Obama went thru trying to hold together Democrats, much less win together over a few Republicans on his stimulus and recovery plan. And now while there's some flak over Neera Tanden for example with Joe Manchin. Democrats are remarkably holding together on this $1.9 trillion plan even in the face of, you know, virtually united Republican opposition.

So, it's definitely a new day. Not only in terms of the direction of the country but in many ways in the willingness of the party that come together, still big decisions to come on whether to end a filibuster which is what they are going to need to do a lot of the things that they are prioritizing. But in the early going there holding together better than I think most people expected.

LEMON: Listen, I'm just looking at my notes here. And I believe, imagine this gentleman, we've been together doing this for what -- four or five years now, an hour and 22 minutes into the show, and Ron Brownstein was the first person to say his name. Can you believe it? How the mighty have fallen. So, Mark --

MARK MCKINNON, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: That shocking.

LEMON: We haven't even talked about him. This is the first time. So, Mark, Senator Lindsey Graham meeting with Trump this weekend hoping to stop the bleeding in the GOP and patch of this feud between Trump and McConnell. But McConnell won't kiss the ring. How do you think this is going to end?

MCKINNON: Badly. It's starting badly and it's going to end badly. I mean, there's just -- there's a huge division in the party. I mean, there's no better example of this than Nikki Haley who came out and there was a very long, could political piece in Politico about Nikki Haley and her future, where she tried to sort of draw the line and make some you know, fairly obvious criticisms of the former president. And it's just blown up in her face.

She tried to get a meeting back at Mar-a-Lago this week with the president. I don't think he's even returning her phone calls. She did not get the meeting. So, it is really, it sort of like and you know, an abusive husband that the party can't get rid of. And it's really problematic.

[23:25:08]

And Don, we can talk about the demographics, but you know, it's going for a smaller, and smaller base. And the problem is that Donald Trump lost white voters. White college educated voters by more than double digits. So, Ron, where are the demographics in the future for the party?

LEMON: Yes.

BROWNSTEIN: Well, you know, look, I mean this is -- first of all the reality is that in terms of internal civil war, it's not a false -- it's not even a fight at this moment. I mean, Donald Trump has reshaped the party coalition. He made it more reliant on the voters who are the most uncomfortable with the way the country is changing, nonurban, non-college, evangelical whites and as a result. And it's basically a three to one Trump Party at this point.

You look at all of the polling. I mean, three quarters of the voters still say they want a republic voter so (inaudible), but that one quarter that is uneasy is plenty to cause enormous trouble for Republicans. I mean, they are the suburban voters who had been moving away, which combined with the big turnout among nonwhite and younger voters. You know, allowed Biden to pose that seven million vote win.

So, it's good, the challenge for those who want to set a different direction for the party is that the voters most open to a different direction of the party are already stepping away from it. What is left is Trumpier. And I think it's going to be hard for them to get out of the spiral, both 2022 and especially --

LEMON: Well, listen --

BROWNSTEIN: In 2024.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: I think if they stay on the Trump strategy, -- staying on the Trump strategy I think -- they think its right, but I actually think it's counterintuitive for them. This is their opportunity to move on. Because as you said it shrinking. And also his power is shrinking. His reach is shrinking. And even if he comes back and he tries to run, I just don't see it. Look, I could be wrong. But I just don't. I think the insurrection, and the QAnon and all that other stuff, I think is really damaging.

MCKINNON: Don, only three presidents running for reelection have lost reelection in the last hundred years. He lost three election, he lost the Senate, he lost the House and the presidency. So, it's not a winning formula. And as Ron just said, he's losing a quarter of the vote that he needs to get from majority.

Unlikely to get it. If I can just quote David Brooks, who is a great conservative columnist for The New York Times, we are talking about -- it was an open letter to young Republicans where he said, this is what we need to do. This is a struggle to create a Republican Party that is Democratic and not authoritarian, patriotic and not nationalistic, conservative and not reactionary, benevolent and not (inaudible), intellectually self-confident and not apocalyptic and dishonest.

LEMON: Yes. Well --

BROWNSTEIN: That's not what is happening, Mark.

LEMON: I got to run. But I got to tell -- I got to tell the audience so that if you want to see -- you know, we always talk about Trump and his allies. They never seem to be held responsible for their lies. You are going to have Hakeem Jeffries on The Circus this weekend. That is a tease. So you got to hear what he has to say. Showtime, The Circus. Guess we didn't have a chance to talk about -- Cancun, man.

MCKINNON: Kick it hard.

LEMON: Cancun Cruz.

MCKINNON: Cancruz. Cancruz.

LEMON: Wait, real quick, I know we are going to break. What did you say to me in the break, Mark? This is the biggest political --

MCKINNON: I just can't imagine a greater political screw up. If you ask me as a political person, what's the worst thing that somebody could do, you know, in a natural disaster where people are really hurting? And that is you take off to the beach and you leave your dog at home.

LEMON: Yes. Thank you, gentlemen. I appreciate it. Have a good weekend. Stay safe. Nine alleged Oath Keepers associates with conspiracy in the Capitol riot, the details of their plans next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Roughly 230 rioters now charged in the attempted coup, but they're not all getting the same treatment in the justice system. Here is CNN's Tom Foreman.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Nine people tied to the radical right-wing Oath Keepers charged as a group with planning and coordinating their Capitol attack. Investigators say one addressed a call from then President Trump saying, he wants us to make it wild, that is what he is saying, he called us all to the Capitol, and he wants us to make it wild.

Among those charged, Bernie and Sandra parker, husband and wife retirees from Ohio. Court papers say they discussed weapons and uniforms before operating as a group with several other similarly attired members of the Oath Keepers militia. Neither has commented publicly on the accusations, both have been released.

But that is not the case for some other separately charged in connection with the attack such as Lisa Eisenhart and her son Eric Munchel.

ERIC MUNCHEL, RIOTER: I am very worried about our country and where it's going politically, religiously, and just morally.

FOREMAN (voice-over): They pleaded not guilty and remained jailed after authorities say they were photographed wearing body armor with zip tie restraints. Eisenhart allegedly said she would rather die than live under oppression.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Did you observe (INAUDIBLE)?

UNKNOWN: (INAUDIBLE).

UNKNOWN (voice-over): All right.

UNKNOWN: I got a shot on the face with some kind of plastic bullet.

FOREMAN (voice-over): Who stays locked up and who walks has been unpredictable. An attorney for Joshua Black from Alabama says his client is being detained while others facing similar charges are free, awaiting trial.

COUY GRIFFIN, NEW MEXICO COUNTY OFFICIAL: I've come to the conclusion that the only good Democrat is a dead Democrat.

(APPLAUSE)

FOREMAN (voice-over): New Mexico County official Couy Griffin is out despite having said he'd return to the inauguration with guns. So as Gabriel Garcia from Florida, who officials say had a knife and ties to the Proud Boys. And Jenny Cudd from Texas has been allowed a trip to Mexico despite boasting about her role in the insurrectionist riot.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Would you still do the same thing again?

[23:35:00]

JENNY CUDD, RIOTER: Absolutely.

FOREMAN (voice-over): But Richard Barnett from Arkansas?

RICHARD BARNETT, RIOTER: I'm a taxpayer, I'm a patriot.

FOREMAN (voice-over): He has sat behind Nancy Pelosi's desk and he's still sitting behind bars.

(On camera): And tonight, add another person to the list of those charged, the Pennsylvania cost, who authorities say posted a video of himself yelling charge and then wading into the officers trying to defend the Capitol, cursing them, fighting with them, and joking afterward that maybe the FBI would be looking for him. On that count, he was right. Don?

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON: Tom Foreman, thank you so much.

Next, Republicans want to make it harder for some people to vote. Who they're targeting and where?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The latest move in republican efforts to restrict voting playing out in Georgia today. Several residents voting and voting rights advocates pleading with state representatives to back off the bill that they say targets Black voters and their voting rights.

It's just one of dozens of bills that Republicans claim would increase election security. So among the measures it proposes, eliminating Sunday voting, eliminating the use of drop boxes, imposing an ID requirement for absentee voting, and sending an absentee ballot request deadline 11 days before Election Day.

I want to bring in now CNN's senior political analyst John Avlon and CNN political commentator Van Jones. Thanks for joining.

John, I'm going to start with you. Republicans say that these bills are about addressing voter confidence and integrity. The chairman of the Gwinnett County -- guys, I can't even get to the question without you laughing at it.

The chairman of the Gwinnett County Board of Registrations and Elections is saying that the quiet -- he is saying the quiet part out loud earlier this month, telling the Gwinnett Daily Post, she says, I will not let them end this session without changing some of these laws, she said this, they've got to change the major parts of them so that we at least have a shot at winning.

So, John, they are admitting that they are losing because other people are given a right to vote?

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yup. That is why I was laughing, because she gave away the whole game there, so we at least have a shot at winning. This isn't about integrity. This isn't about strengthening confidence in the system because the head of the Georgia election stated this was a clean and fair election.

This is about the latest salvo in a long effort to make it more difficult to vote, to benefit the party in power, in this case Republicans because they are afraid the states are slipping away from them.

It's not hard. How you can tell? Any effort to make it harder to vote, to raise barriers is a form of suppression, and it's partisan, it's political attack, it's the opposite of ensuring integrity and inspiring confidence.

LEMON: Lawmakers in 33 states have proposed more than 165 bills to make election law changes. Is there anything that Democrats can do about this, John, in Congress?

AVLON: In Congress? Yeah. In Congress, there is a bill, H.R.1, called For the People Act. This is a big deal. It was the first thing Nancy Pelosi passed last Congress. It should be a priority for this Congress after COVID relief. What it basically would do is put a number of measures in place, like automatic voter registration, to combat the statewide voter suppression efforts.

We still have the federal system where, you know, states are going to do what states are going to do, but national efforts can, in fact, make it more difficult for them to suppress the vote. It will also strengthen the Voting Rights Act. It is an important piece of legislation because we need democracy reform. I think we all should know that by now.

LEMON: And part of the proposal, Van, is to end in person early voting on Sundays. I mean, that is blow to black churches, who hosts souls to the polls events. I mean, that is a direct hit on Black voters.

VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, yeah, because, I mean, it is an incredible Catch-22. When African-Americans don't vote, they say they don't care, they're lazy, you know, they should get whatever they ain't, and the rules say here's all the ways you can vote and we start playing inside the rules, then they say we got to change the rules, we got to change the rules, because by definition, if Black people win, we cheated.

It is inconceivable that we can just intelligently look at the rules and regulations as has been put forward and then follow the rules and win. So, black victory is, by definition, illegitimate and requires a massive government response, according to the Republican Party.

As opposed to saying, hey, guess what guys, maybe we should bring our souls to the polls, maybe we should up our game, no, you want to kneecap the other side rather than increasing your own performance, and that shows you got very little confidence in your own ideas, in your own party, and in your voters.

LEMON: But what is that kind of thinking, Van? When you think about that, there is no way -- there is no way we can win. There is no way we can lose an election.

JONES: Yeah.

LEMON: The Black folks or the Democrats must be cheating somehow. What is that mindset?

JONES: Well, it is basically anything we get is illegitimate. We don't win elections, we steal elections. That is racism. That is white supremacy. That's what that is called. It is exactly the same. If a white person did it, they won the election. If a Black person did it, they stole the election. Literally, they are engaging exact same behavior. Then what you're dealing with is a question of racism and white supremacy.

[23:44:58]

JONES: And I agree with John that we need federal action. Part of what happened is we all missed John Lewis and we all celebrate John Lewis, but the Voting Rights Act that he was beaten for on that bridge was essentially undermined by the Supreme Court.

That was a bipartisan bill, by the way, and had been supported by both parties, the Voting Rights Act, until the Supreme Court knocked it down. There is an opportunity to stand the Voting Rights Act back up in line with John Lewis and a lot of this stuff would go away, but unfortunately, we're not honoring our heroes.

LEMON: We should be encouraging and making the opportunity for as many people to vote in this country as possible. I just don't understand why Republicans do this all the time, try to restrict people. It's an obvious attempt at voter suppression.

Stay with us. We got a lot to talk about. I got to get to a break. I will bring you, guys, back on the other side. Don't go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Abraham Lincoln is often hailed as one of America's greatest president who ended slavery and save the country from collapse. But the truth about Lincoln is more complicated than that.

Now, the new CNN Original Series "Lincoln: Divided We Stand" explores Lincoln's tragic personal life and history making political career to reveal the real Abraham Lincoln and all his complexity and imperfection. Here is a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): There is a physical difference between the white and Black races. There must be a position of superior and inferior. I, as much as any other man, I am in favor of having the superior position assigned to the white race.

EDNA GREENE MEDFORD, AUTHOR, LINCOLN AND EMANCIPATION: Lincoln believed that he belonged to the superior race. He believed that slavery was wrong and that no man should own another. But whether or not freedom would mean equality was something very different.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Back with Van and John now. John, by the way, is the author of a forthcoming book "Lincoln and the Fight for Peace." So, congratulations. Can you see the screen? I will show you later.

AVLON: Thank you.

LEMON: I just got my hands on that.

AVLON: Nicely done.

LEMON: So we'll get that later. All right, so, let's talk about Lincoln. John --

AVLON: Yeah.

LEMON: Lincoln has become an almost mythical figure in American history, invoked by both sides of the aisle. But as we heard, one of the biggest misconceptions about him is that -- his take on race. We celebrate Lincoln, but he is a complex figure in our history.

AVLON: For sure. That quote is infamous. It's from the Lincoln- Douglass debates. One speech and it's a purely racist statement certainly by the standards of the day. But it is an outlier in the Lincoln lexicon. I think that is important to understand.

Lincoln was a complex figure. His views on race evolved over time. But his whole political career was based on opposing the extension of slavery. When he achieved the presidency, he, of course, enacted the Emancipation Proclamation and forced through the 13th Amendment, which was an even more achievement in terms of the permanence of any slavery.

So, you know, as Frederick Douglass once said, you know, from an abolitionist perspective, he was cold and late to the game, in effect. But from the perspective of the national sentiment, he was radical and zealous and achieved what no other president had done.

LEMON: Frederick Douglass has become infamous. I mean, people, you know, knowing about him more.

(LAUGHTER)

AVLON: A little Trump reference there. I got that.

(LAUGHTER)

AVLON: I got you.

LEMON: So, Biden, when he was being inaugurated, I should say, the president-elect referenced Lincoln in his speech, Van. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In 1863, Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. When he put pen to paper, the president said, and I quote, "If my name ever goes down in the history, it will be for this act, and my whole soul is in it." My whole soul is in it. Today, from this January day, my whole soul is in this, bringing America together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK, so, just for comparison, Lincoln succeeded James Buchanan, who was widely regarded as one of the nation's worst presidents, Van. Biden now follows Trump's tarnished legacy. Well, Biden faces different circumstances than Lincoln. Both men tasked with healing a divided nation. What do you think of Biden's approach so far?

JONES: Listen, you know, so far, so good. I do think it is important with regards to Lincoln. The complexity is important. It's true, he did arrive at a much better place, but even in his later years, he would have been perfectly happy for Africans to go back to Africa. He never got to where Frederick Douglass would have wanted him, and yet he did great good.

And I would think that that same standard may well apply to Biden. There are a lot of people who already are frustrated he hasn't done more, that he's not more committed to certain issues and causes, but I do think that you are seeing somebody who has a complex road. He has gotten to the right place overall. What he is trying to do right now is incredibly difficult.

Literally heal a nation in a pandemic, you got to heal the nation after you had an insurrection, you got to heal a nation, and then when you have an economy like this, you got to heal a nation. He's trying to be a healer. Biden himself is complex.

[23:55:00]

JONES: But I think that history may look kindly on his efforts in all of their complexity the same way we look at Lincoln.

LEMON: Yeah. And when you got mother nature slowing down the efforts to get the --

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: -- the vaccines into people's arms, that doesn't help, as well.

Thank you, gentlemen. I appreciate it. Thanks so much.

Make sure you watch the all new CNN Original Series "Lincoln: Divided We Stand" on Sunday night at 10 p.m. only on CNN. And I want you to know about something that I've been working on for a while now. There it is. I just got my hands on this. It is my new book. "This is the Fire: What I Say to My Friends About Racism." It is coming out in just a few weeks. You can pre-order it anywhere you get books. So check it out. There is me on the back.

Thanks for watching, everyone. Our coverage continues.