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London Terror Attack; White House Faces New Deadline Ahead Of Hearings; Interview With Rep. John Garamendi (D-CA); Impeachment Battle; Biden To Blitz Iowa On "No Malarkey" Bus Tour; Forty Million Under Winter Weather Alerts From California To Maine; Comic Gary Gulman Tackles Mental Illness. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired November 30, 2019 - 11:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:00:08]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me.

I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin this hour with new developments in the London terror attack and the heroic acts of bystanders who likely prevented further carnage.

This is video of the surreal moment brave witnesses confronted the armed suspect who had already stabbed two people to death. One man is spraying the suspect. Did you see right there with the fire extinguisher? Another is armed with a narwhal whale tusk that witnesses say was grabbed off the wall of a historic fishmonger hall -- a popular market.

And of course, you're hearing the voices there laughing because at first, they thought this was a joke until they realized this was the real deal. Moments after tackling the man to the ground, police arrived on the scene and shot the suspect to death.

Meanwhile, we're learning more about that suspect -- 28-year-old Usman Khan. According to investigator Khan was previously convicted on terror charges and released from prison last year after serving less than half his sentence.

Phil Black joining us now from London. So Phil -- what more are you learning about these heroic bystanders who confronted this terror suspect?

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredricka -- here in London today, there is tremendous anger felt towards the attacker, sorrow for those harmed and killed, but also a great deal of gratitude and admiration for those brave two who stepped in so quickly and without much concern for themselves and stopped him from harming other people. Particular those two people that you've touched on, the people who thought quickly, who improvised, grabbed what they could at their disposal and then used them effectively as weapons to slow down this man's assault. You mentioned the fire extinguisher. That was blasted in his face to slow down and confuse him then someone else grabbed what you could only describe an unusual weapon -- the tusk of a narwhal. A narwhal is small arctic whale distinctive because of its long singular tusk. It was hanging on a wall inside the building where all this started.

And that was then used to prod and drive the man into a position, to corner him against a wall when more people raced in from across the road, from different directions. Again, just simply innocent bystanders who saw all of this unfold.

He was then wrestled to the ground, pinned down and disarmed and held there for some minutes before the police arrived. He was pinned down finally in a position which is just behind me, to the left of your screen there. It's now covered by that blue and yellow police tent as the investigation, the forensic work continues.

That's where he was held. That's also where he was shot and killed by police when they saw that he was wearing something that closely resembled an explosive vest. We know now that it was fake, but at the time the police made the decision that they had to neutralize that threat.

So from the Queen, the Prime Minister, the Mayor of London, even the Commissioner of Police here -- they have all expressed their regard and their thanks for those people who stepped in and really made a difference in stopping this man's rampage -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And then Phil -- what more about what British authorities are saying was the early release of this suspect from prison?

BLACK: Yes. This is what is inspiring questions here today. This man was a convicted terrorist, convicted back in 2012 as part of a plot to blow up or attack the London stock exchange. He was convicted specifically for supporting, financing, planning terrorism. Sentenced ultimately to 16 years in custody.

After eight years, follow the required procedures in this country, he was then released to serve the rest of his time on license as they describe here, or on probation effectively. It mean closely monitored. It means mostly spent at home. It means being tagged electronically.

So there's a lot of anger that that was allowed to happen and he was then allowed to go on and still carry out this attack.

Take a listen to Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaking on this issue earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: This guy was out. He served half of his sentence. He's out on automatic early release.

And I have long said that this system simply isn't working. It does not make sense for us as a society that we're putting terrorists, people convicted of terrorist offenses, of serious violent offenses, out on early release. And we argue that people should serve the tariffs, serve the term of which they're sentenced.

That's my immediate take away from this. That's why we're committed to increasing the sentences for serious and violent offenders.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[11:04:49]

BLACK: So this wasn't just a case of someone who is known to authorities and carrying out an attack. This was a convicted terrorist. Someone who was still being monitored and tracked electronically by authorities who presumably were aware that he was in the area yesterday attending a criminal justice seminar. But he was still able to use that as cover to carry out harm to a number of people and scare so many more -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Phil Black in London. Thank you so much.

All right. To this country now and to a critical decision. The White House is weighing in on the impeachment inquiry. House Judiciary Committee chairman, Jerry Nadler has set a new deadline in the case. The White House now has until Friday to determine if it will have its own attorneys participate in the committee's hearings.

That's on top of another deadline happening tomorrow. The White House still has to decide if it will take part in the first hearing scheduled for Wednesday.

And with the clock ticking on a decision, President Trump is spending this holiday weekend at his Mar-A-Lago estate in Florida.

That's where we find CNN's Kristen Holmes in West Palm Beach, in fact. So Kristen -- has the White House given any indication of whether it will participate in some manner in these proceedings?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fred -- we know right now that they're still mulling over this proposal. However sources say that while no final decision has been made, that they are leaning to not actually having counsel be in these impeachment proceedings.

This is an interesting development given that President Trump and his allies for weeks have been saying that the entire impeachment proceeding was unfair because he didn't have representation, because he could not cross examine these witnesses because they had no part in the hearing itself.

The judiciary committee -- they're basically undercutting that argument and saying that you are allowed to participate. Essentially that would look like them being able to cross examine witnesses. President Trump even possibly being able to cross examine witnesses. Them being able to suggest witnesses and submit new evidence that could be taken into consideration. However, allies of President Trump say they don't want to validate the process and they're afraid that if a White House counsel does participate, it doesn't look so much like a sham, looks more like an actual impeachment proceeding.

WHITFIELD: And then Kristen -- this week, the President made a surprise visit to Afghanistan and also a surprise announcement that peace talks with the Taliban have restarted. What are you hearing about those talks?

HOLMES: Well Fred -- it was a surprise announcement including to some people in the White House who did not know that those talks had actually been restarted.

So essentially, what we're hearing is that there have been sporadic communications between Washington and the Taliban since the President abruptly called off those peace talks roughly three months ago.

If you remember, he cited then a Taliban attack in Kabul that left one American soldier dead. So we haven't really heard where this would be but it was an abrupt end. Now he said they had restarted.

Now the White House is touting or officials from the White House are touting this as they are going to be restarting shortly, essentially, not that they had already started.

So it will be interesting to see how exactly that plays out. We have no idea what they are agreeing to. What the terms were for these peace talks starting again.

WHITFIELD: Kristen Holmes -- thank you so much. We'll check back with you throughout the day.

All right. Let's talk more about all this particularly about Afghanistan.

Joining me right now, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, Democratic Congressman John Garamendi.

Congressman -- good to see you and happy Thanksgiving weekend.

REP. JOHN GARAMENDI (D-CA): Good morning. Same to you.

WHITFIELD: All right. So the Taliban is saying tht peace talks have not resumed with the U.S. despite President Trump's claims to the contrary this week. Have you or anyone on your committee been briefed about these potential discussions?

GARAMENDI: No, we haven't. And it appears as though even the White House staff wasn't briefed. This is just one more example of the helter-skelter -- yes, we are in; no, we're not in -- back and forth that this President's policies create enormous chaos in our government.

WHITFIELD: So during that surprise visit, you know, to Afghanistan, the President said that the Taliban would like a cease fire. Do you have any indication that that is the case?

GARAMENDI: Well, the indication we have is that in the past history, they want a cease fire, but then they don't abide by it. And this one is a difficult thing with regard to this whole issue of Afghanistan.

There are multiple Taliban operations in Afghanistan. They don't coordinate with each other. You may be able to get one or another on board and then a third or fourth goes off in a different direction. One of the great difficulties that exists there.

And one of the reasons we really have to steady the ship of state. We have to have a clear steady policy going forward. And we simply do not have that now.

WHITFIELD: All right. Let's talk about some other domestic matters turning to the impeachment inquiry. You know, next week, your colleagues in the House Judiciary Committee will begin their proceedings.

What do you expect will happen? What are you hoping to learn?

[11:09:57]

GARAMENDI: Well, the important thing we're going to learn this coming week is what an impeachment is all about.

What are the standards for impeachment? What is the history? What is the constitution?

All of those things are going to be laid out in the first hearing. It's going to be exceedingly important for the American public to understand the particular clause in the constitution that calls for impeachment of an official, president or other official of government, who is acting beyond the best interest of this nation. Perhaps it's bribery, treason or acting in their own self-interest not in the interest of the American public and the American state.

So that's going to be laid out -- very, very important foundational knowledge for the American public to pay attention to what this is all about.

WHITFIELD: You had seen a recent polling showing that half of Americans polled believe that the President should be impeached and even removed from office. But are you concerned that even as it enters this next phase, that people are fatigued by the process and may not be fully engaged.

GARAMENDI: I think they will become engaged. They certainly became more engaged through the two weeks of hearing that the intelligence committee had.

This will be another piece of the puzzle going forward. And the American public is very, very concerned. They may 50 percent or more support impeachment and removal.

The really important matter here is for the American public to understand the offenses that Trump has committed in Ukraine and beyond, the cover ups, the obstruction of justice. All of those things will be laid out in the weeks ahead.

Will it move the American public? We'll see. But clearly this president is operating in a way that we've never, ever seen before, even with Nixon.

WHITFIELD: And in all of this, the White House has an opportunity to participate in these hearings. They have stone walled past requests for witnesses and documents. Why is it important that the White House be involved and do you believe that they will take up on this offer?

GARAMENDI: Well, one of the defenses that the White House has continually made is that this is an improper inquiry in which they've not had a chance to participate. That's simply never been true. And now clearly, the invitation went to the President and to the President's lawyer to participate in the judiciary committee hearings.

And in the previous intelligence committee hearings, certainly the Republicans had equal time with their own counsel and with each of the members of the Republican minority being able to participate in those hearings. So it really puts to a lie the White House's strategy.

WHITFIELD: Many Americans, you know, see this upcoming 2020 presidential election as a less divisive way in which to hold the President, you know, accountable. Do you believe that people will appreciate this phase prior to election day in which they could express whether they want this president in or out of office?

GARAMENDI: Well, we'll see where the impeachment goes itself and the trial in the Senate should it come to that, what will come of all of that.

But clearly, the American public is learning what the President is all about, of what he's done in Ukraine, jeopardizing our national security for his own election benefit. Trying to strong arm, to -- to bribe Ukraine. To help a foreign government interfere in an American election which clearly was what was going on in 2016 with Russia.

And also, the President is actively deflecting the known fact that Russia involved itself, tried to influence the American election in 2016 by saying oh, no, it was Ukraine all along.

This is simply a deflection, and frankly, it is a terrible disservice to our upcoming election where we know from American intelligence agencies and foreign intelligence agencies that Russia is already involving itself in the American 2020 election.

WHITFIELD: And now 11 months out from the Presidential general election, and speaking of 2020, you know, you have yet to endorse a Democratic candidate. Have you made up your mind?

GARAMENDI: I certainly have. I want Joe Biden to be our next president. I want somebody that comes from the middle class, from the working American to be our president, who understands what it is to try to make it in America as a family working in a factory on a construction job or in an office. Trying to put together the necessary resources to educate their kids, to provide their health care.

That's Joe Biden. That's where he's been through his entire career. Standing shoulder to shoulder with Obama during those eight years. Caring about our veterans. Caring about the working men and women. So yes, I'm all in for Joe Biden.

[11:14:58]

WHITFIELD: Was there something that has transpired over the last couple of months that has cemented your view? I mean you listen to some of the critics -- whether it be in the Democratic Party or even beyond -- about Biden that he may not -- questioning whether he's relevant, whether he is, you know, in step and in tune with the American public, you know, spanning so many generations. What is it or is there a moment that solidified it for you?

GARAMENDI: Well, I think it's -- I've been watching all the candidates. Democratic candidates are terrific, each and every one bringing to the debate very, very important issues.

But what really cements it for me is that this government under the Trump administration, is total chaos. The Department of Defense, Homeland Security -- you name it -- every single one of the agencies of the government have been taken down, largely disassembled and in chaos.

We need a president that can put this ship of state back in its correct order so that we have a government that actually functions and has a --

(CROSSTALKING)

WHITFIELD: So you see Joe Biden as a mender.

GARAMENDI: Absolutely. Not a divider. One nation, under God -- I'm sure that's what Joe Biden has believed for his entire life as I've watched him over the years. One nation, under God -- that's where he is coming from. And he can pull us together, not divide us, but find the common threads of this nation's future and pull us in a direction that we can all be together.

We have seen the most divisive president ever -- ever in our history -- really tearing us apart. We got to end that. Joe Biden can do that better than any other person that is running for president.

WHITFIELD: And you see him as the most viable candidate in which to take on the incumbent president.

GARAMENDI: Absolutely. The debates will be something. Trump is just vicious. He is vicious. He's a bully. Joe Biden has been in government, vice president, with world leaders, understanding what it takes to stand tall. As a leader next to this divisive bully called Trump, he's going to do very, very well.

WHITFIELD: All right. Congressman John Garamendi -- thank you so much for covering so many bases today for us.

GARAMENDI: Thank you -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Still ahead -- speaking of Joe Biden, he kicks off his tour of Iowa, a crucial state to win the 2020 election. Can he recapture the momentum or will voters place their bets on another candidate rising in the polls?

And severe weather strikes -- flash flooding sweeps away three children in a car stranded on an island in Arizona. Police on the scene right now leading search and rescue efforts.

[11:17:40]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. The White House now has until Friday to decide if it will have its own attorneys present for the House Judicial Committee's impeachment inquiry hearings. Based on the investigation by the House Intelligence Committee, members of the Judicial Committee are responsible for crafting the articles of impeachment against the President.

Kim Wehle is with me now from Washington. Kim -- good to see you. She's a former federal prosecutor and the author of the book "How to Read the Constitution and Why".

All right. So what do you think the charges will be against Trump?

KIM WEHLE, AUTHOR, "How to Read the Constitution and Why": We will see something for obstruction of justice or obstruction of Congress; maybe two different articles in part based on the witness intimidation we saw during the actual impeachment hearings.

We will see potentially something around abuse of office. That's really what the framers of the constitution cared about when it came to the impeachment clause. The idea that the person in the office of the presidency with the tremendous amount of power he has would use that power for his own personal gain and not for the American people. And I think that's very well established in the hearings and there really isn't a counter narrative to that.

In addition, we might see something on bribery because that's clear and expressed in the constitution which is fairly rare for constitutional issues to have something spelled out very black and white. Bribery is a basis for impeachment.

And then lastly we might see something on campaign finance violations because as we know Michael Cohen, the President's former lawyer, is in jail for the idea, accepting something of value to affect an election, and here that would be from a foreign entity and that's in general banned under the federal campaign laws.

WHITFIELD: And when you bring up Michael Cohen, that then is a big indicator that all of these articles of impeachment that you just mentioned will stem not just from Ukraine but you see it also stemming from the Mueller report.

WEHLE: Well, that's a good question actually -- Fredricka. I'm not sure. I think there's two strategies here. One would be to throw the book at him and that could go on frankly for weeks in terms of going over not just what happened in Mueller, obstruction, Russian interference, accepting help from the Russians.

That was very clear even if the Trump campaign didn't actually engage in a coordination around that. We also have emoluments clause violations. We have declaring a national emergency at the border in a way that's contrary to the appropriations clause. So that would be one strategy.

It seems like the Democrats have taken an alternative strategy which is the focus on what we've known as the quid pro quo. A clean, discreet, narrow narrative. A story that Americans can understand. I'm not sure that that's going to work out --

WHITFIELD: You think that's more effective?

WEHLE: -- you know, I don't know --

WHITFIELD: You know, in order to sway or grab public opinion because it simplifies it as opposed to making it as widespread, you know, it's branching out the other investigations?

WEHLE: I'm not so sure it's the most effective strategy. We'll have to see. I think it is good to the extent which it's harder for the Trump team to go off on sort of tangents to distractions.

We've seen a lot of these distractions fall apart. Oh, this is unfair procedurally. We're not hearing that anymore. Oh, this is about the whistleblower colluding with Adam Schiff. We're not hearing that anymore.

At the end of the day, the story is that what Trump did was good for Trump, good for Vladimir Putin, bad for Ukraine, bad for America, bad for foreign policy. And there really isn't a counter story, a counter narrative to that so we'll have to see if this strategy works.

WHITFIELD: All right. Kim Wehle -- thank you so much.

WEHLE: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Good to see you.

WEHLE: Thank you.

[11:24:57]

WHITFIELD: All right. Next, can Joe Biden win Iowa? The former vice president kicking off a major tour of the key state in the 2020 election. We'll discuss, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: In just a few hours from now, former vice president Joe Biden will kick off an eight-day, 18-county Iowa bus tour. The goal -- connect with voters, recapture momentum, and boost support in this first-in-the-nation voting state. The latest Iowa poll taken this month showing Biden is slipping 5 percentage points among likely Democratic caucus-goers since September and Mayor Pete Buttigieg surging, up double digits over the same time frame.

Biden's campaign officials say the Iowa swing, which they are calling the "No Malarkey Tour", will give voters a more up close view of the candidate.

CNN Political Commentator, David Swerdlick joining me right now. So, David -- what does this eight-day tour signal to you about the vice president feeling like he's got to be up close and personal and maybe more face time with a lot of Iowans?

[11:30:02]

DAVID SWERDLICK, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. Good morning -- Fred. And happy Thanksgiving.

I think of this "No Malarkey Tour" as a little bit of a callback to the 2000 "Straight Talk Express" from Senator John McCain when he was running for president. The idea that while you have all these other candidates out there that are running on these sort of newfangled ideas and newfangled styles -- here's Vice President Biden, still the guy who you always knew, who puts his pants on one leg at a time, who's going to get out there and just talk to the voters one-on-one.

And now that we're about two months or a little more than two months away from the Iowa caucuses, I think his campaign is seeing Mayor Buttigieg in their rear view mirror and saying look, we've got to take the bubble wrap off and get our candidate out there. And that's what this is about.

WHITFIELD: So what might be the issues that a Joe Biden will want to drive? Because you can't just show up. You've got to talk about something. You've got to connect with people over something very specific.

SWERDLICK: you do. But I think a lot of Vice President Biden's appeal, Fred -- is this idea that he's the tried and true, that he's not going to do anything too different. He's a return to normalcy or at least that's what his campaign wants to present him as.

You've got Mayor Buttigieg ahead of him in Iowa. Not -- still behind him in national polls, but gaining on him and Vice President Biden wants to own that moderate, center left lane. But Buttigieg is moving into it and I think he's going to say look, I am carrying on the legacy of the very popular President Obama. I'm going to go something like expand the Affordable Care Act. Not go for Medicare for all and hope that that resonates with Iowa voters.

WHITFIELD: Right. You heard perhaps my interview with Congressman Garamendi earlier -- SWERDLICK: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- who said, you know, he sees Biden that's why he's endorsing him as somebody who can fix the things that the current president in his view has either broken or taken away.

I asked him, you believe Joe Biden is a mender. And he says yes, you know. He would be a mender, someone to fix things.

So on his heels, on Joe Biden's heels -- Buttigieg. And he's drawing some heat. At the same time he's being celebrated, he's also getting a lot of heat from progressives in his party after recently releasing an ad that paints tuition free public college as too radical. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I believe we should move to make college affordable for everybody. There's some voices saying well that doesn't count unless you'd go even further. Unless it's free even for the kids of millionaires. But I only want to make promises that we can keep.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And then you've got Congresswoman Alexandria, you know, Ocasio-Cortez who is even accusing Buttigieg of using GOP talking points. So what kind of risks --

SWERDLICK: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- you know, is Buttigieg taking or is it a risk or is it an asset in his view?

SWERDLICK: Well, without wading into all the policy specifics and just sticking to the politics here, I think this is Mayor Buttigieg again, Fred -- saying look, if the left of center candidates -- or I should say the progressive further left candidates like Senator Warren or Senator Sanders are proposing free college for all, I'm going to notch it one back at least and say well maybe free college for some.

It allows Buttigieg to portray himself as someone who is more say realistic or someone who's closer to the center or someone who is not going to rock the boat as much.

He's the one candidate in this field that was sort of standing on his tiptoes not really in the progressive or the moderate lane. And when it was clear that some of the energy went back toward the center, he was able to pivot toward the center successfully.

And that I think is why I think he's moving forward in the polls in the way that some other candidates, like say Senator Harris, is not.

WHITFIELD: All right. David Swerdlick -- Happy Thanksgiving weekend. Thank you so much.

SWERDLICK: Thanks. Thanks -- Fred. WHITFIELD: We'll be right back.

[11:33:43]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right. This breaking news right now.

Just moments ago, police in London gave an update on the investigation into the terror attack. A video of bystanders helping to take down the suspect shows them with fire extinguishers and one man wielding a narwhal whale tusk which witnesses say he grabbed off the wall of a historic fishmonger hall, a popular market and meeting spot.

Here now is Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NEIL BASU, POLICE ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER: At this time, we found no evidence -- no evidence to suggest anybody else was involved in this attack., However, we're still making extensive inquiries to ensure that no one else was involved.

Our investigative priority at this time is to ensure that there's no one related as an outstanding threat to the public.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And CNN's Phil Black will be joining us at the top of the hour with more on this London terror attack.

Next, 40 million people from California to Maine hit with severe winter weather. High winds have knocked down tractor trailers and piles of snow have been dumped on roads, causing traffic headaches this holiday weekend.

A live report -- next.

[11:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

The search is on for three children who were swept away during a flash flood in central Arizona. The kids were in a vehicle that was trying to cross a flooded creek and was washed away. Several other people that were in the vehicle have been rescued. Helicopters are scouring the area in search of the kids.

Officials warn that flash flooding can turn streams and rivers into quote "raging killer currents in a matter of minutes. And of course, we'll keep you updated on any developments.

The storm causing the floods is part of a larger system. As many as 40 million people are in the path of winter storms that could delay flights and snarl traffic for people who are returning home for the holidays this weekend.

Take a look at this. In Colorado, powerful wind gusts of 65 miles per hour knocked them over -- knocked over this semitruck last night, just like that. And now, the northeast is bracing to get hammered as well.

Meteorologist Ivan Cabrera joining us right now. So Ivan -- some airlines are already issuing travel waivers for flights tomorrow. How bad is this?

IVAN CABRERA, AMS METEOROLOGIST; Yes, Fred -- good to see you. They started doing that yesterday. Take advantage of it because I think we're going to see scenes like what you see behind me, just not as ideal as across portion of the northeast when you dump this amount of snow.

I'm taking you to Arizona's snowball. They're having a good time here, temps at 24. But this is all part of the same system that will bring us, imagine this, every kind of precipitation you can imagine depending on where you are.

If you're on the cold side of the storm, we're talking about snow, sleet, freezing rain and ice. And then if you're on the warmer side of the storm, we're talking about rain, hail, the potential for frequent lightning, severe storms, some of which could produce tornados. We'll get to that in a second.

But here's the big low. This is the same storm that crashed into California and brought one of the snowiest Thanksgivings we've ever seen across the southwest.

Well, here it is now cranking up with heavy snow and strong winds and the combination of which has made for blizzard conditions for the remainder of today and into tomorrow.

And then the pink where you see here -- these are winter storm warnings. Minneapolis, get ready for the potential of certainly well over a foot of snowfall. That happens into tonight.

[11:44:58]

And we track this storm -- severe weather across the Gulf Coast from Louisiana into western Tennessee. Potential tornados tonight, isolated. But I'm thinking certainly the potential for 60-mile-an- hour winds, which by the way, could be a possibility in the northeast.

But here, we're dealing with snow and wintry mix. I mean that is just going to be a mess. We like to be either in snow or rain, not in this potential here because I think there will be rain. It will be falling on temperatures well below 32. That is going to cake the road, untreated ones anyway. And that's going to be providing us with dangerous travel conditions.

Even if your flight makes it in, it likely won't or it will be very late. Once you get on the road, please be very careful. Visibility is going to be a mess. Does it look like a nor'easter? It will be. This is a secondary coastal, it will develop with that main storm that's coming out of the Midwest.

Oh and by the way, this continues on Monday so even Monday we're going to be snowing heavily across the northeast so winter storm watches have already been posted for this area. These warnings here will expand and then you see some areas of ice across western PF. So the kitchen sink with this storm literally, well not literally but figuratively -- Fredricka for all of us here. Come to the southeast, it's going to be relatively quiet in Atlanta.

WHITFIELD: Yes. What a mess in the northeast for sure.

CABRERA: Yes.

(CROSSTALKING)

WHITFIELD: All right. Ivan Cabrera -- thank you so much.

CABRERA: You bet.

WHITFIELD: We'll check back with you. Appreciate it.

All right. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:50:03]

WHITFIELD: All right. We have a different type of story this morning.

You might know comedian Gary Gulman. Well these days, he is giving thanks and giving back. Giving thanks because of all the help that he has had in his fight with severe treatment-resistant depression and giving back because his new HBO comedy special, "The Great Depressed" makes you laugh and it makes you think.

Our John Berman sat down with Gulman and talked about his struggles and victories.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GARY GULMAN, COMEDIAN: Over the years, I have tried Pamelor, Nortriptyline, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, Paxil, Abilify, Adderall, Effexor, Celexa, Zyprexa. At one point my doctor said let's just try drugs that rhyme. Thank you Dr. Seuss.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Comedian, Gary Gulman makes jokes about his depression --

GULMAN: Thank you.

BERMAN: -- because he has to. GULMAN: I was so clearly in distress. My hands were shaking. I

acknowledged that I was sick and I started to write jokes about it because that is the most comfortable I am is when I'm being funny. So I started saying things like have you ever gotten recognized in the psych ward?

BERMAN: So it's a true story. You were recognized in the psych ward?

GULMAN: Yes. Yes. The day I got there, a man came up to me and he said I won't tell anybody, but you are Gary Gulman, right? Am I crazy or are you Gary Gulman?

I grew up at a time the definition of manhood was so narrow. You were either Clint Eastwood or your are Richard Simmons. There was nothing in between. There were no Paul Rudds, no kind-eyed Mark Ruffalos. You had to be so hard.

BERMAN: His new film, "The Great Depressed" is a brutally honest chronicle of his journey back two years ago from a near fatal battle with treatment-resistant depression.

You said you were afraid you would never get better.

GULMAN: Yes. I wasn't communicating. I didn't feel good about anything. There was nothing I looked forward to. And I spent a lot of time trying to think of painless suicides. Yes.

BERMAN: He was forced to step back from comedy. He admitted himself to the hospital twice and more.

GULMAN: My psychiatrist is an advocate for and an expert in something called electro convulsive therapy which used to be called electro shock therapy, but they felt "electro shock" was not quite horrifying enough. They said, yes, electro shock is disturbing but I feel like we're soft selling the convulsions.

BERMAN: How important is to you to de destigmatize these things? Like the hospital? Like electro convulsive therapy?

GULMAN: I think that I have a responsibility and an obligation, but also I'm so grateful for feeling good that I want to share this. That if people feel the way I felt, can feel better, I would do anything in my power to get that information to them so they will try it and so that they won't be afraid.

BERMAN: You actually joke about suicide notes.

GULMAN: Yes. Yes. And I was concerned about that.

I really feel in some way that my aversion to essays has saved my life again and again because anytime I've contemplated suicide, I've thought you got to leave a note. I'm not spending the last hour of my life doing something I've dreaded throughout it.

I didn't want to trivialize people who leave suicide notes or are suicidal. So we actually checked that with the National Foundation for Suicide Prevention to make sure that wasn't incentive.

BERMAN: Really? Was that the closest to the edge?

GULMAN: Yes, I think so. I think that was the closest to the edge. And also there was one joke where I said that I would compare my childhood to Charlie Brown's if Snoopy had died and I said that is too dark and really sad.

So I laughed at that joke. My wife went oh, it is so sad.

The only antidepressants we had access to in the 1970s and 80s pretty much was "snap out of it" and "what have you got to be depressed about". That was the second leading brand of antidepressant.

BERMAN: Were you convinced that you could make mental illness funny?

GULMAN: I was convinced at that point that even if I didn't make mental illness funny, it would be a valiant effort, sort of a quixotic effort that even if I failed miserably, this was something that took some current. And quickly it became not even an act of courage because it worked so well.

[11:55:01]

BERMAN: So well that he landed the HBO special. So well that people are laughing, a lot. And so well that he is having an impact on people's lives right before our eyes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My sister and brother both have sever depression, so I talk about you.

GULMAN: Oh, I'm sorry. Oh. All right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're an inspiration.

GULMAN: Ok. Thank you. That's so nice. Thank you.

That doesn't happy every day, but yes. See? But occasionally.

BERMAN: You say the first time you washed the special, once you saw a cut together, you cried.

GULMAN: It hit me that it was over and I -- I survived. And now I'm thriving --

BERMAN: How do you know you're going to be ok?

GULMAN: Well, I don't. But I'm optimistic. And it doesn't dissipate. If anything, the work and the talks that I've given have given me more energy. And I can't thank God, the universe, the computer simulation that we're living in, whatever gets you out of bed, I can't thank that entity enough for saving me.

I'm so glad -- are you kidding me -- that I stuck around for this. Oh.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Specials to Gary Gulman and John Berman. If you or someone you know is struggling, please call the National Suicide Prevention lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.

And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:00:06]

WHITFIELD: Hello again, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Saturday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.