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Barrett Faces More Questions On Obamacare; Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) Is Interviewed About Dems Pressuring Pelosi To Get Quick Stimulus Compromise; Long Lines At Texas Polling Sites On Day Two Of Early Voting. Aired 12:30-1p ET

Aired October 14, 2020 - 12:30   ET

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

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[12:32:45]

JOHN KING, CNN HOST: To Capitol Hill now, President Trump's Supreme Court pick, Amy Coney Barrett, in the middle of another day of questioning from senators and some live pictures of the hearing. You see it right there.

So far today, Judge Barrett pressed for her views on whether the President can pardon himself, whether the President could unilaterally delay the election, and again repeatedly asked questions about Obamacare and whether the entire law can stand even if the individual mandate in a pending case was ruled unconstitutional.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

AMY CONEY BARRETT, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: If you have a statute and the Affordable Care Act is obviously a very long statute. If there's one provision within the statute that's unconstitutional, the question is whether that one section can simply be rendered null and excised from the statute severed so that the rest of the law stands or whether that provision is so central to the statute, that it's unconstitutionality like once it's pulled out the whole house of cards collapses. And the presumption is always in favor of severability.

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): The main thing is the doctrine of severability as a presumption to save the statute if possible, is that correct?

BARRETT: That is correct.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: CNN's Phil Mattingly live for us on Capitol Hill with the latest. Phil, what jumps out the biggest news today?

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, I think her unwillingness to weigh in on whether the President can pardon himself is certainly grabbing headlines. But I actually think that and particularly look, it was very realistic. I appreciate the former professor explaining severability. So I don't have to on television. But who asked that question? It was the chairman of the Committee, Lindsey Graham. And he did what we've seen over the course of the last 48 hours several Republicans do, which is a little bit bizarre, if you think about the last 10 years. And that is basically say, look, there's no way Obamacare is going to get struck down. There's no way this court case that will arrive in the Supreme Court just a few days after the election will actually strike the law down in its entirety.

And what they've been pinning that on is the issue of severability. And I think you've seen several lawmakers, including the chairman this morning at the very top of his presentation today to open the hearing is basically tee that up for the nominees. So you look pointed, you don't need to tell us how you would rule, you don't need to tell us how you feel about a case, why don't you talk about why severability tends to win out in most of the -- in a lot of these cases. And I think that's why they were teeing it up.

And I think you almost saw it start on Tuesday night when Mitch McConnell, the Senate Majority Leader had a debate in his contested race and said nobody believes Obamacare is going to be repealed or nobody believes Obamacare is going to be struck down. The Senate Republican research team sent out a document about all the reasons why Obamacare wasn't going to get struck down, even though again, Obamacare could be struck down with a case that starts shortly after the election.

[12:35:18]

So I think it's just -- it's fascinating to see Republicans, as Democrats are really just laid on a barrage about why Obamacare is in danger telling the personal stories, using the poster boards with pictures of their constituents. Republicans have repeatedly come to the idea or come to the kind of the defense not of the law itself, but at the fact that they believe that it's going to stand. That's just -- it's a back and forth. It's been interesting throughout. And I think it's certainly a strange anybody as you have watched the election cycles over the course of the last four, five, six cycles, when Obamacare was essentially a curse word for Republicans.

Now essentially saying, look, we think it's going to stand. We think there's no way it gets struck down. Now, I would note that many legal scholars on both sides of the ideological spectrum don't believe the case is currently heading towards the Supreme Court is one that has a great chance of actually succeeding and being struck down. But I would also note is that the Supreme Court so clearly it's done OK so far.

KING: Yes, well put. And I'm not a doctor or lawyer, but I think Obamacare without the individual mandate, it's kind of like a car without gas. You still got a car, but you're not going anywhere. Phil Mattingly, appreciate that up on Capitol Hill.

Let's move to another big issue on the Hill. The House Speaker Nancy Pelosi getting new pressure from fellow Democrats that over efforts to try to get a deal done on a coronavirus stimulus package, an issue, of course, the upcoming election and the differences between the $2.2 trillion House plan and a $1.8 trillion White House proposal. Speaker Pelosi says the White House plan falls far short not just in money, but in policy. Listen here, she says tells our friend Wolf Blitzer pressure from other Democrats, the speaker says is misguided.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Yesterday I spoke to Andrew Yang, who says the same thing. It's not everything you want. But there's a lot there.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): Honest to God, you really, I can't get over it. Because Andrew Yang, he's lovely. Ro Khanna, he's lovely. They are not negotiating this situation. They have no idea of the particulars. They have no idea of what the language is here.

BLITZER: Madam Speaker, I certainly respect you. But I also respect Ro Khanna. I respect Andrew Yang. I respect members of the Democrats who are members of the problem solvers. They want to deal because so many people right now --

PELOSI: Well, the problem solvers, by the way, don't have any earned income tax credit or child tax credit in their proposal either. But let's not go into that.

BLITZER: But does it --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Joining us now Michigan Democratic Congresswoman Debbie Dingell, she's a member of the House Democratic leadership, a senior whip but also a member of the bipartisan problem solvers caucus. Congresswoman, it's good to see you. Forgive me, but it seems to me like the Democrats are selling -- celebrating Thanksgiving a little early here, getting together at the family table and throwing things at each other. What is the pressure on the Speaker at this moment?

She says, leave me alone. I will figure this out. Let me negotiate. But as you know, yourself included, a lot of members think 20 days of the election, let's get something done. Let's not wait to see if Joe Biden wins. Let's not wait to see if we can get a bigger deal in January. What's going to happen?

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): So first of all, it's not just Democrats at the Thanksgiving table kind of sounds like America right now, John. We've all having dinner, Thanksgiving dinner. And I don't think she's saying, leave me alone. I'm the one at the table. She -- I just finished a leadership meeting with her. She is very determined to try to get a package that she knows.

I mean, I've been one of the people that has been adamant need a package because I hear from people every single day. And by the way, I hear from one of my restaurant owners and one of the leaders of needing help for independent restaurants across the country and wouldn't be helped by what's been put forward right now. So we need to get to the table. We all need to stay at the table. We need consistency on the side like not -- I'm telling everybody not to negotiate. Oh, let's go big. You know, within a few hours, it's very disconcerting.

American people are tired of our fighting and bickering at the Thanksgiving table. They're scared. They need something and they want to get it done. And I think the Speaker is trying to deliver something that's actually going to deliver to the working men and women that are counting on all of us.

KING: Well, you heard her. Wolf was trying to ask her yesterday about Ro Khanna who was trying to say Madam Speaker cut a deal. He comes from one of those affluent districts in the country in Silicon Valley. And he says even there, he sees people in lines at a food bank. He says small businesses are facing shutdowns. Listen to him just earlier today with my colleague Poppy Harlow saying, I get it Madam Speaker. I support you if it takes a couple days, great. But we need a deal. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. RO KHANNA (D-CA): I believe our House plans are better than what the White House is proposing. But the point is I'm one of 435 members of Congress. There are two chambers of Congress. The Republicans control the Senate. Trump is in the White House. And the point is I could say, well, let's have a con Orion plan or nothing or I can say constituents of mine are hurting. We have to compromise. We have to get something done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[12:40:11]

KING: You know, the Speaker very well, Congresswoman. At what point would she maybe give in? I get it. She's going to hold out. She thinks she's got leverage over the White House. But as you know, Senate Republicans have also mocked the President's plan. She needs to get the President to say deal and pressure the Senate Republicans. At what point does she maybe need to give a little?

DINGELL: You know, John, I've been saying from the beginning of the person that can bring us all to the table and get a deal is the President. He has to decide that he wants it and then he needs to tell the Republicans that they need it.

And, you know, I should -- I know what Ro was saying, we're all seeing people in our district suffering. They are really desperate. But we're going to make sure we're delivering something for them. And not just for corporations. And I think she, you know, first of all, everybody is short, everybody is tired, everybody is 20 or we may even be down to 19 days now until the election. And if it's only 20, it seems like forever.

People are tired, people are short, people are, in our districts, are desperate. But they're not desperate for nothing. So the Speaker is our leader. We've got to support her right now at the table. And she's not a stupid woman. She's one of the smartest woman's I know. She knows that people need something to help them. So she knows what her members want. She's listening to her members. The members want help for the people in their district. But we got to deliver for the people. And you know, last night, everybody's, I mean, the one thing I'm going to tell you, everybody is short, everybody is tired. And we got to be very careful to not let people pit us against each other. That's what people have been trying to do to this country for four years. And we cannot let ourselves be pitted against each other. We owe it to the American people to work for them, period, not against each other.

KING: You often find yourself in the middle of these internal call and family discussion. Sometimes they become family feuds. Both parties have them. They're not unique to the Democrats by any means. Congressman Dingell, appreciate your time and insights today. We'll see 20 days until Election Day, we'll see if we can figure this one out. A lot of people are counting on some help. It would be nice if they could figure it out. I get that it's complicated. Congresswoman, thank you for your time.

Up next for us, new data tells us as coronavirus cases are on the rise contact tracing is falling short.

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[12:47:12]

KING: Small family gatherings are a big part in the rising coronavirus case count, that according to the CDC director Robert Redfield. This, as many states still find that contact tracing is nowhere near where it needs to be. Check this out, 44 states right now do not have enough tracers. That's according to a new Johns Hopkins NPR survey.

Crystal Watson joins us now. She's a senior associate at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. Crystal, thank you for your time. I see, I saw reading about this report you call contact tracing stagnant right now, you think it is stagnant. We have a map I think we can show our viewers, 44 states do not have enough of what they need estimated to need in terms of contact tracing, 44 states short of the need at a time, 36 states are reporting more new infections right now, as opposed to a week ago. That's a dangerous collision course, is it not, if we don't have these tracers, and we have more virus and you can't find out where it's coming from, then you can't slow the spread?

CRYSTAL WATSON, SENIOR ASSOCIATE, JOHNS HOPKINS CENTER FOR HEALTH SECURITY: Yes. I think this is an essential component to the response. It's not the only component. And once we have large surges of cases, big epidemics, it's hard to rely completely on contact tracing, because it can be overwhelmed quickly. So it's a combination of hiring that workforce that we need, and bringing case numbers down to a manageable level where contact tracing can be effective.

KING: And so I was looking at the report, it says we're about halfway there in terms of hiring the personnel. What's happening? Are states and cities, groups not giving this the urgency it needs? Is there not the money involved, or there not the people showing up asking for these jobs? What's the problem? WATSON: I think for the vast majority of public health departments that are hiring contact tracers, they're working as hard as they can. I don't think there have been sufficient resources from the federal level to support this and definitely mixed messaging from the White House, about the importance of contact tracing. So I think those have all been problems and in really scaling up this capacity for the country. It's a difficult job, though, this is a really difficult thing to do is to contact trace.

KING: Forgive the interruption. We've talked about this before in the past. And I've talked also with some technology people and some, you know, mayors and public health people around the country. This was an area where people thought technology, apps would be incredibly helpful in getting this into people's hands, getting it into community, whether it's an activist, whether it's an individual, but looking at the report that hasn't grown or it hasn't been supported as aggressively as many had hoped. Is that true?

WATSON: Yes. The digital contact tracing approaches or exposure notification, which has been put forward by Apple and Google is really kind of a workforce multiplier. It won't replace the capacity we need to build with human beings doing contact tracing. But I still think it's possible that it could be helpful. It's just -- adoption has been slow and it's really hard to know how effective it is because there hasn't been enough time and research on this aspect of the response.

[12:50:09]

KING: Crystal Watson, thank you for your help, again, important insights and we'll stick with it. It's disappointing to see that 44 states currently not up to what they need. We'll keep an eye on and appreciate your insights. Thank you very much.

Up next for us, back to the campaign trail and record early voting, shattering records across the country. We'll show you.

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[12:55:01]

KING: We count your votes in 20 days. But in this remarkable pandemic election, record numbers of you are voting early in remarkable fashion. This new information shows us the giant scale of the early vote. I'm going to show you some data. Some of it comes from Catalyst, that's a data company that provides analytics to Democrats, to academics, and to nonprofit advocacy issues. Let's go through some of the numbers here.

And look at this number total ballots cast. This is just from 42 states, just 42 states reporting this data so far. More than 12.8 million, more than -- almost 13 million ballots cast already the presidential election so far, total ballots requested. This is from 38 states and it doesn't include mail-in states. This is just people requesting ballots, 37.5 million ballots requested. That is a remarkably high number, again, much of it in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Here's what we know. This is the data that comes from Catalyst. Here's what we know about who's asking for these ballots. In Pennsylvania, 77 percent of the ballots cast have come back from people who are registered Democrats, 15 percent Republicans. That doesn't mean all the Democrats voted for Joe Biden doesn't mean all the Republicans voted for Donald Trump. But we do know from polling that party loyalty is pretty strong this year. So look at the lopsided advantage in Pennsylvania, Florida, also an advantage not quite as lopsided as Pennsylvania but 51 percent of the ballots cast come back from people who are registered as Democrats 29 percent, three and 10 from Republicans.

Again, not a guarantee all these people voted for Biden, but Democrats look at these numbers, and they see an advantage. What about Texas? Well, look at this 762,000 plus ballots already cast in Texas. CNN's Ed Lavandera is live for us there in a polling location in Plano, Texas. He's been talking to voters and watching. And Ed, I can see the lines behind you another day of remarkably long lines, high interest.

ED LAVANDERA, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, it has been stunning turnout across the state. We are in Plano, Texas, one of those suburbs in northern Dallas that is the focus of so much attention. The line out to the street here this morning, the poll workers here tell us the lines were even longer yesterday. But this is an area of Texas that is a great focal point here in this coming election. This is ground zero of where Republicans have enjoyed so much support as the Republicans have dominated state politics here in Texas for decades.

And there's a real question about how suburban voters are going to or whether or not they're going to turn on President Trump. You heard President Trump saying yet last night in Pennsylvania saying suburban women please like me. And they clearly know that they have a problem here. And we have heard that repeatedly from voters who have turned out here in Collin County for President Biden. And many of those voters are still skeptical about whether or not Texas is actually going to turn blue this year. But they are saying pay close attention. Don't sleep on what is happening here in the state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm looking at this crowd right today. I feel the enthusiasm of all the people participating. I think this is a crucial, crucial election for the American people. And I'm proud to be participating in it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is one of the most important elections of our lifetime. I feel that the Democrat Party is leaning a little bit far, you know, to the left. And I just think that the country needs conservatism.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'd like to see a change overall. I don't like the demeanor in which our President addresses the nation, his colleagues, the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP) LAVANDERA: And John, I got fascinating detail you can throw into your magic wall there. Consider this in 2016 there were 15.1 million registered voters here in the state of Texas. In just the last four years, that number has jumped by 2 million newly registered voters. So the question here is how are all those voters going to break because in 2016, President Trump only beat Hillary Clinton by about 800,000 votes here in this state. And many people, both sides Republicans, Democrats telling you are saying that they expect this election here in Texas to be much closer than it was four years ago. John?

KING: And Ed where you are is critically important because you mentioned 2016, if you look at 2018 when Democrats picked up some house seats in Texas, it was in the Dallas suburbs, it was in the Houston suburbs, it was the suburban revolt against President Trump. The question is, has that tempered somewhat or does it continue into 2020? That's the challenge right where you are, right?

LAVANDERA: Absolutely. And we're hearing that, you know, you have to take into account too that these suburbs have changed dramatically in the Houston and the Dallas areas in just the last 10 years far more diverse than it's ever been, an influx of new voters, how all of that is going to shake out is dramatically changing the politics on the ground here.

And every voter that you talk to here in Collin County and in the suburbs of Houston can feel that day to day. We've had one voter say that they've never seen so many Biden signs in their -- in the yards as they drive around these neighborhoods. But Democrats still remain very -- even Democrats will tell you that they are skeptical about whether or not Biden can flip Texas.

[13:00:06]