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Biden Sets His Priorities, Trump Prepares To Fight; Trump Plans To Message Fraud At Mass Rallies; Georgia's January Senate Elections Key To Biden Administration; Markets: Positive Territory Post Biden Win; Biden to Speak on His Plan to Fight Pandemic; China Hopes to Reset U.S. Relationship after Biden Win; Mexican President Declines to Address Biden as Winner; U.S.-Israeli Relations under Biden; Russian State TV Amplifies Unfounded Fraud Claims. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired November 09, 2020 - 01:00   ET

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

[01:00:00]

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Elect Joe Biden sets day one plans for his presidency including taking on the coronavirus pandemic.

But President Trump, well, he's not conceding. His team planning a tough fight in the courts and on the road insisting, without any proof, that he's been robbed.

And with the upcoming transition in power, world leaders aren't the only one reacting. We'll take a look at how markets are trending over the U.S. election outcome.

Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and all around the world.

I'm Michael Holmes. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

U.S. President Elect Joe Biden quickly moving forward with his plans for fixing the country as the Trump camp prepares to fight the election results.

Biden is already planning to undo several of president Trump's executive actions and reassert American leadership on the global stage. And do some fence mending as well.

We can expect a push towards greater unity and a goodbye to that "America First" branding.

But Biden's first focus will the pandemic. He's expected to make remarks in the coming hours on his coronavirus policy and reveal a new task force.

The number of new daily cases in the U.S. hit astonishing highs over the weekend.

Now Biden's new website has already launched. It's buildbackbetter.com. It lays out his day one goals for racial equality, the economy and climate change. He's repeatedly said he would rejoin the Paris Climate Accord and the

World Health Organization.

Meanwhile, we are hearing the Trump Campaign is preparing a messaging blitz over baseless claims that the election is being stolen from him.

Let's bring in Jason Carroll who is covering Biden's next move live from Wilmington in Delaware.

So talk more about these immediate priorities. What he wants to do, not just between now and the inauguration but day one.

JASON CARROLL, CNN U.S. CORRESPONDENT: Well, Michael, first things first.

It's the pandemic. That is the immediate crisis facing this country.

A number of leading health experts have made it very, very clear that in order for this country to get a handle on what is happening here -- President Elect Biden and his team, it's going to have to be an all hands on deck approach.

And Biden's team was well aware of that, they've been preparing for this. They've had a lot of groundwork laid on this.

As you say, today, later today, Monday, President Elect Biden is going to be giving more details about this 12-person coronavirus task force that he's put together.

He's going to be giving remarks about how he plans to beat COVID-19 here in the United States.

And just a little earlier, on "STATE OF THE UNION," one of his senior advisers talked about some of the priorities that this president elect has on his plate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SYMONE SANDERS, SENIOR ADVISER, BIDEN CAMPAIGN: Joe Biden has noted that there are a number of things that we need to tackle and do and that we'll need to start on day one.

Yes, that includes addressing the climate crisis. Yes, that includes in his 100-day strategy building on the success of the Obama-Biden's 21st century task force on policing.

Tackling the virus. On Monday, we will announce the COVID task force, if you will, that will operationalize the Biden Harris Campaign plan to address COVID into a plan that the government can use.

So what I can tell you right now today is that Joe Biden's going to make good on his promises on the campaign trail.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CARROLL: So Symone Sanders there, sort of detailing some of the priorities.

But again, first things first. And that's the pandemic.

Michael.

HOLMES: Yes, I did want to ask you too. The president, of course, still has not conceded. What concerns are there in the Biden camp about White House cooperation, the transition in the weeks ahead and these claims that he's being robbed and what he's planning to do about it.

Are they worried in the Biden camp?

CARROLL: Well, look there are concerns. And rightly so given the signals that they've been receiving from the Trump Administration.

Look, the Biden team has basically prepared for the good, the bad and the ugly in all of this.

Their transition team has been working behind the scenes since Labor Day, laying some of the groundwork for the transition. But there might be a bump in the road there.

One of the early steps in the transition has to do with something called ascertainment. I know that's a term, ascertainment, that a lot of folks probably aren't aware of.

It's basically -- what you have is you have an administrator in a government office, OK, who basically has the charge of signing off on paperwork that allows millions of dollars in funds to then go to the Biden team, it also allows access to government agencies.

That paperwork hasn't been signed as of yet. Still waiting for that happen.

[01:05:00]

So again, the Biden team has prepared for the good, the bad and the ugly.

They have assessed and put together a huge team, a legal team, of folks to help them, see them through this entire process. So we're going to have to see what happens.

But definitely, the Biden team says they are prepared for whatever may come their way.

Michael.

HOLMES: And of course, after the inauguration, Joe Biden may or may not have a majority in the senate.

He's got this reputation for reaching across the aisle. Are there people on the other side of congress that the Biden camp are likely to reach back?

CARROLL: Well, so far we've heard from folks like Senator Mitt Romney, we've heard from folks like Senator Lisa Murkowski.

But the news here is that the chorus of GOP senators that the Biden team has not heard from.

I mean, you think of people like former president George Bush who's come out in support and said hey, it's time to get around this man and get the country put on the right track.

But really, what the news is here again from all of the G.O. folks (ph) on the other side of the aisle that the Biden team hasn't heard from.

But from Biden's point of view what he says he wants to heal the country, he wants to bring this country together.

He's got a history here in the United States of working in the senate. Two terms with former president Barack Obama, he knows the people on the other side of the aisle.

The question is, is he going to be able to bring them into the fold?

HOLMES: Yes. A remarkable silence from Republican senators so far. They're probably waiting to see what their leader is going to want them to do.

Jason Carroll in Wilmington, Delaware. Appreciate it. Thanks so much.

CARROLL: You bet.

HOLMES: Meanwhile, President Trump, as we've just been discussing is clearly not planning to bow out without a fight. He's got no plans to concede as of now.

In fact, sources say he has being urged by many in his inner circle including son-in-law Jared Kushner to hold rallies across the U.S. pushing for vote recounts.

Just picture that.

Many Republicans in congress, as we were just discussing, have been silent on President Trump's defeat. Though some two are urging the president not to concede parroting his unfounded claims of election fraud.

Let's go to CNN's Boris Sanchez at the White House.

Yes, the world's been waiting for a concession speech that's not coming.

But what about this CNN reporting that the Trump campaign is planning this sort of messaging blitz, unsupported by evidence.

Tell us what's being talked about.

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Michael. It appears that this show of denialism that we're seeing from Trump on Twitter one that he wants to take on the road now with what sources are describing as a media blitz.

Essentially, a set of campaign style rallies where the president goes around the country trying to build a case among his supporters that the election was illegitimate and stolen from him despite not having any real concrete evidence to prove that.

One of the ideas that's been floated is that the president would read the obituaries of people who supposedly died before the election but yet were able to vote in it, something that several Republicans have suggested happened in the 2020 election. But of which there is, again, no conclusive proof at all.

The president has been encouraged to hold these campaign rallies by not only by his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as you mentioned but also his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, and several figures on his campaign staff.

Notably though, we know that the president has been broached by his son-in-law and even the First Lady Melania Trump about the possibility of coming to grips with reality and conceding that he lost to president elect Joe Biden.

The president clearly not feeling eager to do that.

We should also note among these legal challenges that are being presented, there are officials close to the president who privately have acknowledged that they are weak and they have very little chance of actually overturning the result of the election.

But part of the idea about having these campaign style rallies isn't just to drum up support and to keep his "movement," as he calls it moving forward.

But it's also to delay the transition in order to try to essentially circumvent the electoral process itself, Michael.

HOLMES: It must be unprecedented the notion of an going president holding rallies in the lame duck area (ph).

I want to ask you, going forward. He did have 70 million people, Donald Trump, who voted for him. Obviously, that is a lot of support.

I guess a lot of people are asking what does he do with that influence, what does he do with that political capital post administration?

SANCHEZ: Yes. So this can take a ton of different routes.

But we have to acknowledge, just as you noted with Jason, a big part of the reason that so many Republican lawmakers have been largely mum --

[01:10:00] -- on many of these incendiary allegations that the president is

making that cut to the core of American democracy is because he holds so much sway over his own party. Because he has so much power.

And in a sense, it's not going to go away on January 20th when we suppose that Joe Biden will be inaugurated.

The president effectively becomes a kingmaker in Republican politics. And from races, whether national to local, he will hold a sway, his endorsement will have an impact.

Aside from that, you can bet that the president is going to capitalize on that power.

Whether that means paid speeches or books that were ghost written or potentially continuing to have these rallies into the future, that is yet to be seen but something to consider.

And we know that behind the scenes there have been conversations about a potential second run, if he acknowledges that he lost in 2020, in 2024.

HOLMES: Interesting. Boris, always a pleasure. Good to see you, Boris Sanchez --

SANCHEZ: Thank you.

HOLMES: -- there in Washington.

All right. Joining me now, CNN political analyst, April Ryan, and CNN political commentator, Scott Jennings.

Good to see you both. April, let's start with you.

I wanted to ask. The left wing of the Democrat Party is growing in many ways. And Joe Biden's cooperation with Republicans in the senate, if he needs to do that, will also certainly mean the left's agenda is going to be stymied.

I'm curious for your thoughts on what pressures Joe Biden might face not just from Republicans but progressives.

APRIL RYAN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Joe Biden has a albatross around his neck going into January 20th.

Trying to unify not just the Democrats with Republicans, but also the Democratic Party with the progressives, the very liberal left and those who are centrists.

Joe Biden is walking into an office where both parties are fractured but yet there is a strong call to unify in the midst of a global pandemic. How to figure all of this out in the midst of the United States dealing with a recession, trying to stave off depression in the midst of racial reckoning.

He has a lot on his plate but he says he's up to the challenge. And what he's doing is he's bringing all different persons. The

transition team is looking at all different types of different people. Not just Democrats, not just Republicans. But people on the far right, people on the far left to be able to come together and work together.

Because he knows if he does not get a team that can help him push through in congress and just in the broader sense of America, for people to buy into his plan, he's in trouble.

HOLMES: OK.

RYAN: So the onus is for him to push and unify on all levels.

HOLMES: Scott Jennings, I'm just thinking back to what Boris Sanchez was telling us about that the president might hold rallies in this very delicate period.

I mean, that's just extraordinary. What do you think? Do you think he's good to march on with these legal challenges, refusal to accept he lost.

George W. Bush said the results looked free and fair. Do you think he really feels he has a case?

SCOTT JENNINGS, FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I don't know what he feels. I think his lawyers are going to go to court this week.

And really, it's time to put up or shut up. The court procedures that exist are there for everyone and they're welcome to avail themselves of that. But they really grind to a halt if you don't present any evidence and a judge says there's no "there" there.

So it's on them to bring something forward that would allow them to continue.

It appears to me Joe Biden's won the election. I think it's pretty clear. But that doesn't mean they're not going to try to run their claims to ground.

Regarding the rallies. I don't know that it would do him any good to hold rallies all over the country.

I tell you what would do the Republican Party some good is if Donald Trump got Georgia on his mind and help the Republicans win two senate seats in Georgia.

Because I can't think of any better revenge on Chuck Schumer than to stick it to him with two senate wins on the way out the door.

HOLMES: You can't overstate the importance of this. April, these Georgia senate races for Democrats.

In terms of Joe Biden getting anything done in a legislative or even appointment sense he needs to go two for two in Georgia, doesn't he? RYAN: Yes. He needs to go two for two. And if he doesn't, think

about this.

You have people like Susan Rice who is primed to possibly be the next secretary of state in his administration or head of DOD, whatever he decides to put her in, she is potentially going to have a stumbling block if the senate does not flip.

And let's say there is a tie. The tie breaker or would be who? Kamala Harris, Vice President Hamala Harris at that time.

So at issue, they want to flip this. And I'm telling you, people like Maxine Waters of the state of California are focusing hard on these senate seats in Georgia.

They're throwing money behind it, trying to rally for these people to make sure that the Dems can get the senate seats.

[01:15:00]

HOLMES: Scott, it's interesting. Senate Leader Mitch McConnell, he has blocked literally hundreds of Democrat house bills from even being considered in the senate over the last few years.

Joe Biden's talking of bipartisan cooperation. But if Republicans retain senate control how likely do you believe it is that Mitch McConnell will reach across the aisle as Joe Biden likes or will he do what we did with Barack Obama and that's basically saying no to everything?

JENNINGS: Well, I don't think that Mitch McConnell's ever going to rubberstamp legislation coming over from Nancy Pelosi.

And Nancy Pelosi ought to take a cue from the election. The voters here have pinned her ears back a bit and rewarded Republicans with new seats in the congress.

But I think if you look back on the Obama years, the big bipartisan deals that were done were largely done by Joe Biden and Mitch McConnell.

They served in the senate together, they've worked together, there's a familiarity with each other.

So actually, I'm thinking that what the voters said to both parties is we don't want either of you to have too much power and we want you to work together.

And you've got two guys now, Biden and McConnell, in a position to do it.

And what's the best predictor of future behavior is past behavior. And McConnell and Biden have a past of bipartisan cooperation.

HOLMES: Yes. What's your take, April? Even if Republicans end up in the minority and the senate Republicans do have the power to stop some legislation by using the filibuster, do you see an era of gracious cooperation ahead?

RYAN: I think Scott's right on the fact that Biden and McConnell have had a relationship. But you have to remember we're in a new era.

The Trump era, Trumpism. And Trumpism could stay in effect.

Like this president is planning on having rallies to gen up the basement (ph) of his base saying that he won the election.

Don't think that Mitch McConnell is not hearing that. Don't think that Mitch McConnell doesn't understand that there is a segment of the country that feels this president is still going to be president.

So he's -- Mitch McConnell, I'm going to watch how Mitch McConnell handles this because it's going to be a delicate tightrope walk.

Unification or still following this new era of Trumpism even though the president will not be president anymore.

HOLMES: And Scott, what's your take? What to you does the Republican Party look like going forward?

Donald Trump, he might not be the president anymore but he will in some ways own the party, still wield remarkable influence over members of congress fearful of Trump retribution.

Does the party have to change once Trump is gone or is it what it is?

JENNINGS: Well, Trump has certainly changed the party. If you just look at the exit polls from the election.

The Republican Party is now much more of a working class party even a multi-racial working class party.

Donald Trump got the highest share of the non white vote of any Republican presidential candidate since 1960. That came from working class Hispanics, working class African Americans and working class white Americans as well.

So I think the party has changed. And I also think that you're right, Donald Trump retains a lot of popularity.

He got 93 percent of the Republican vote and what he says moving forward is certainly going to have influence.

I think what the Republicans who are left in Washington have to do is find a way to keep up that the relationship with the new people Donald Trump brought to the party, but rekindle the relationships that he destroyed.

Largely in the American suburbs among people with college degrees who went over to Joe Biden.

So it's a big task. To try to keep the new folks and go back and grab some of the old folks as well. HOLMES: Right, right. And April, I did want to ask you this because

I saw a "Fox" poll the other day -- and not surprising because there's other polls that have shown the same thing.

That most Americans are in favor of universal health care or Medicare for all. There is a lot of support for some of these progressive policies.

They were not adopted by the Democrats as part of their platform or even being sort of like you can't touch that at the moment in the political climate. But why not? People favor these things.

Are progressive policies going to be butting against the establishment Democrats?

RYAN: At issue is the pay for. That's what people are having a problem with, that's what people are having a problem with. How do you pay for it?

And it's a great idea to have universal health care for all. It's a great idea to make sure that if you have pre-existing conditions that you will be covered no matter what.

It's a great idea that if your child is up to the age of 26 you can still cover your child because they may not have that job that offers benefits.

But at issue, is the pay for. And we saw ACA, the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare, the issue was the deductible, the pay for.

If this country can do that --

[01:20:00]

-- one, it will help bolster up a working class that former president Barack Obama was hopeful to do.

And also help minorities. The least of these in this nation, not just minorities but the poor and the least of these who basically use the emergency room at a hospital as their primary physician.

But at issue is pay fors. And if you have one party saying oh, great we've got to do it no matter what and another party saying it's too costly, it's taxing, where do you find the common ground?

And that is the problem without the hurt and the cuts in the American pocketbook as well.

HOLMES: Yes. The U.S. is the only major industrialized nation without it so there are ways for it to be done.

It's going to be interesting how it goes in this country. I wish I had more time.

Sorry, about that, Scott. I was going to come back to you but we're out of time. Scott Jennings, April Ryan; appreciate it.

RYAN: Thank you so much.

JENNINGS: Thank you.

HOLMES: We are watching the markets, by the way, and how they have been really reacting to the results of the U.S. election. We'll have that for you when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(CNN HIGHLIGHT)

CHARLES RENFRO, ARCHITECT: My name is Charles Renfro, I'm an architect. We have made some fairly known spaces in New York City.

VOICE OVER: But one of their most unique projects is this one, "The Shed." Built in 2019, it's New York's building on wheels.

RENFRO: Architecture, in order to be relevant is going to need to rethink the way it's made.

I think what will happen is that these buildings that you see around us, these mirrored, slick, glass-enclosed buildings will actually begin to open up. And will breathe, will have green, will become much more about nature.

What's driving the smart city is an idea about sustainability. It's just fantastic.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Welcome back. Stock markets around the world appear to be excited about the prospects of a Joe Biden presidency.

U.S. futures shooting up hundreds of points on Sunday.

[01:25:00]

Let's have a look at where they are right now.

The Dow in positive territory, one and a quarter percent; Nasdaq futures two and a quarter percent.

The Asia Pacific markets, well, they've also been in positive territory as you can see there. The Nikkei in Japan over 2 percent up, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong nearly one-and-a-half percent.

All the red -- all green arrows today.

Let's go to Selina Wang who's live in Tokyo. What is it the markets like, Selina?

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Michael, that's right. The markets are clearly embracing this Joe Biden presidency. As you mentioned, the Dow and S&P futures are edging higher continuing

those gains from last week. Wall Street was already expecting this Joe Biden victory before this weekend.

And now the focus is really on what's going to happen in that senate race. Many investors are expecting Republicans to hold on to the senate which they expect to lead to more modest regulation as well as limit the ability of Democrats to roll back those tax cuts.

So it appears this idea that gridlock is good for Wall Street is still alive and well.

Though some investors are hoping -- were hoping for that blue wave which would then lead to even more stimulus in their eyes as well as even more economic growth.

But, Michael regardless of who is the sitting president, the Federal Reserve and the coronavirus pandemic remain two powerful drivers of the markets.

Now on one hand, you have the Federal Reserve which is expected to keep interest rates low. On the other hand, you have cases continuing to surge in the United States with no sign of slowing down.

But the expectation from investors is that Biden can more effectively constrain the pandemic. He's already announced plans to assemble his coronavirus task force.

Now shifting gears abroad. In Asia, markets across the board are rallying. Here in Japan, if you look at the Nikkei, it was already trading at the highest level in three decades and that is continuing to rally.

For global investors, the expectation is really that Joe Biden is going to go back to a more diplomatic approach to trade policy and foreign policy.

Mainland markets in China are rallying as well. Now Joe Biden is expected to change the overall direction of Washington's tough on China policy but at the very least, they're expecting a more moderate, a less chaotic approach to China trade.

Michael.

HOLMES: Well, good to see you, Selina. Thanks so much. Selina Wang there in Hong Kong for us -- or Tokyo. I can't tell. It's Tokyo. I don't know where she is.

Hitting the ground running -- we're going to take a break here.

How President Elect Joe Biden plans to jump-start his fight against the pandemic. Coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[01:32:06] MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM, everyone.

I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company.

And let's go back to our top story this hour.

President Trump pulling out all stops to try to prove that the U.S. presidential election was rigged. First filing legal challenges and now a messaging blitz is planned still with no evidence to support his claims that the election is being somehow stolen from him.

Meanwhile, president-elect Joe Biden getting ready to make good on some campaign promises. He's planning a series of executive actions to undo many of President Trump's controversial policies.

But his top priority is to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. When Joe Biden takes office in January, health experts say he will likely be facing the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. Now keep in mind the U.S. is already seeing record infection numbers with almost every single state trending in the wrong direction.

In each of the past five days the country reported more than 100,000 new cases. Many experts say they feel that that is drastically undercounted.

It is the worst stretch since the pandemic began and experts warn the numbers could rise in the months ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: I expect that probably hundred thousand Americans are going to die between now and inauguration day. That's an awful, awful number.

And the new team is going to have -- it's going to take them weeks if not months to start trying to turn things around.

Again I think we can do much, much better than that. I don't think that's what we are fated to but it will require a lot of work and leadership in the coming weeks and months if we ever want to avoid that fate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: That was Dr. Ashish Jha who also urged the Trump administration to cooperate with Biden and his new coronavirus task force.

As we said, the President-Elect is expected to unveil the 12-member group in the coming hours, and then speak about his coronavirus plan.

Earlier I spoke about it with CNN medical analyst, Dr. Larry Brilliant.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DR. LARRY BRILLIANT, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: You, know the U.S. has always been a leader in the fight against pandemics around the world, instead of being a laggard as we have been here. It isn't even so much just the politicization of the pandemic it's been ignoring the science, ignoring how bad this pandemic is. Pretending that almost a quarter of a million Americans hadn't died from this disease.

And that tool is also rising. We're back to a thousand and soon I'm afraid 2000 people dying every single day from the coronavirus.

[01:34:44]

DR. BRILLIANT: So step number one, bringing in the scientists to just dealing with the facts. To take a look at how this epidemic is spreading. To try to find those places where mask-wearing which we know is effective is not being used to understand what NPI (ph) is, targeted closures, not big clampdown closures, where they would work social distancing, understanding how you deal with clusters and super spreaders. And how you do good old-fashioned epidemiology to trace these diseases back to their roots.

I'm optimistic that we will get back to that. And when we do that, then we've got a really good shot at throwing COVID in to the dustbin of history.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Our thanks to Dr. Larry Brilliant there for his insight and we should point out Johns Hopkins does say that the number of coronavirus cases for Sunday topped out for the day at just under 106,000. So the progression of days over 100,000 cases continues.

Now, when President-Elect Biden takes office he will also try to reset America's strained relationship with China. Though he plans to continue Trump's tough line on trade and other issues he says he won't be bullying allies.

And according to "South China Morning Post", Biden's victory has encouraged Beijing to renegotiate the trade deal it made with President Trump.

For more CNN's Kristie Lu Stout joining me now from Hong Kong. Donald Trump painted China as an adversary on a -- boy, a whole raft of issues.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

HOLMES: What's the reaction in the region? What might change under a President Biden?

STOUT: Well, at this hour we are still awaiting official response from Beijing. Look, the U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to concede, so Chinese President Xi Jinping has yet to issue a statement.

That being said we've been closely monitoring and following state-run media in China. And it's been interesting. They have been signaling a sort of note of cautious optimism in response to Joe Biden's victory in the elections in the United States. In fact the number of news outlets in China expressing hope that Joe Biden would be able to somehow stabilize this rocky relationship between these two world powers.

One nationalist tabloid in China, "The Global Times" even said that it believed that Biden's win will usher in a quote "buffering period during this time of rocky relations.

Let's bring up the editorial for you. Saying quote, "Biden is expected to appoint more professional officials to his diplomatic team. And so it will be possible for U.S. China tensions to take a brief timeout.

Now, it's interesting. Another op-ed that we were taking a look at is from the state run "China Daily", which acknowledged that, you know, there is bipartisan pressure in the U.S. to continue to be tough on China. But that there could be improved relations writing this. "Improved ties with China may not be a policy option for U.S. politicians of either party at the point. But nor is it a priority consideration but managing it certainly should be a prime concern. The question then is where to start. The answer appears to be obvious -- trade, providing the trade talks is critical to restore some understanding and trust in China-U.S. Relations."

Now Michael look, the tension between the U.S. and China will continue to simmer. This is a critical moment in U.S.-China ties. We are at a point of unprecedented friction between these two world powers that we haven't seen since the establishment of diplomatic relations during the Nixon area on a number of fronts.

And that's why the stakes are so high. China has been watching this very closely.

Back to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Speaking of which in Hong Kong where you are, the pro- democracy movement hasn't exactly had the unbridled support of the Trump administration. What's do people there where you are hope to see from President Biden?

STOUT: Well, they're not expecting to see a rollback, let's say, the re-establishment of normal trade relations or normal trading status. That's not expected at all.

You're right. There have been a number of activists in Hong Kong, also elsewhere who have been very pro Donald Trump. They saw Donald Trump is being hard on China. They welcomed his tough policies. Tough on trade. Tough on tech (ph). Sanctioning Chinese officials and Hong Kong officials for what's happened here in the territory.

That being said those are not the actions of Donald Trump but of foreign policy experts and of congressmen and lawmakers in the United States. But there has been a sigh of relief in Hong Kong and across China, the end of this chaotic form of policy is over. People looking forward to a reset in relations that could only be a positive for diplomatic relations as well as for economic growth. Back to you.

HOLMES: Great analysis as always. Thanks so much Kristie Lu Stout. Appreciate it.

When President-Elect Biden takes office, he will try to reset America's relations with China, of course, and we'll be monitoring that as well.

All right, we are going to take a short break here on the program. When we come back, Israel's relationship with Donald Trump has always been strong. What will it be like under President Biden? We're live in Jerusalem, coming up.

[01:39:48]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES: Welcome back. Latin American leaders are responding to Joe Biden's election victory. Cuba's president tweeting that he now sees the possibility of restoring the country's relationship with the U.S., after years of crippling sanctions from President Trump.

We'll have a report from Havana in just a moment.

But first we turn to Mexico where that country's president is giving a more muted reaction.

Here's Matt Rivers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, many leaders around the world are congratulating Joe Biden on his victory but at least so far, Mexico's president is not in that group. Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said on Saturday, quote, "We are going to wait for all the legal issues to be resolved. We do not want to be reckless. We do not want to act lightly. We want to be respectful of the self determination of the people and of their rights."

He basically is refusing to acknowledge that Biden has in fact won this election. Pretty shocking when you consider how important the United States is to Mexico.

Now part of this is just Lopez Obrador continuing his foreign policy tradition of actively avoiding commenting on the affairs of other countries but this could also be in part because Lopez Obrador has created a good relationship with Trump over the past few years. And Lopez Obrador himself lost a very close presidential election here in Mexico back 2006

He claims it was stolen from him due to corruption. Now Lopez Obrador did say he already has a good relationship with Biden.

Matt Rivers, CNN -- Mexico City.

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PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it wasn't exactly a message of congratulations. Cuban president Miguel Diaz Canel said his government did recognize that American voters had quote, "charted a new course by electing Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.

This election was crucial for Cuba, because the Cuban government has gone from the Obama administration which restored ties with Cuba, to the Trump administration which put in place some of the most punishing sanctions that this island has seen in decades.

The Cuban government says they are eager to see if they can sit down with a incoming Biden administration to try and work out some of those differences.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN -- Havana.

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[01:45:02]

HOLMES: Now, Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulating the U.S. President-Elect on Sunday, noting their friendship of nearly 40 years. The Prime Minister then going on to praise and give thanks to the outgoing president, Donald Trump. The two have been close allies, of course, over the past 4 years, with President Trump most recently, helping facilitate the signing of the Abrams Accords between Israel and the U.A.E.

Now, journalist Elliot Gotkine is tracking the story for us from Jerusalem.

I mean a lot of people thought initially there was as fairly muted congratulation from Mr. Netanyahu to Joe Biden, from the Israeli leadership across the board, which you know, frankly, Israel got a lot from Donald Trump, of course.

What is the feeling there? Even concerns about what could change under Biden?

ELLIOT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: Michael, you're right. There was some criticism for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and some of his ministers. Not only for the content of their congratulations to President-Elect Joe Biden, but also to the time that it took them to get round to it

Netanyahu tweeting his congratulatory message more than 12 hours after CNN and others, had called the U.S. election in favor of Joe Biden. and then the content itself, studiously avoiding describing Joe Biden as President-Elect. Now, that may have been an oversight, but it may also reflect, as you say, the close friendship with President Donald Trump. He and Trump, have regularly described the outgoing U.S. president as the best friend Israel has ever had in the White House.

I think it's also a recognition of fact that Donald Trump remains President of the U.S. and will be until Biden takes over in the New Year. And wanting to ensure that he doesn't, you know, do anything to upset President Trump.

But as you say, you know, Netanyahu and Biden have been friends, they go way back more than four decades. I don't think this is going to damage relations between the two. Biden himself has described himself as a Zionist and his 1973 meeting with the Prime Minister Golda Meir as one of the most consequential meetings of his life.

So there's a good personal chemistry there perhaps one which was lacking when Barack Obama was in the White House, and when there were some constrained relations.

Two possible areas of disagreement though, these will be the Palestinians, and also the Iran nuclear agreement.

HOLMES: Speak to those, if you would. How would Israel react to a U.S. Return to that nuclear deal? And yes, Palestinians have not been happy under Trump. Is that likely to change? I guess the answer is no.

GOTKINE: Well, on the Iran front, I think Netanyahu will be very unhappy if Biden follows through with his promised to rejoin the Iran nuclear agreement, which Donald Trump pulled America out of.

Biden has said that the U.S. will do so if and when Iran is back in compliance with that agreement. Netanyahu doesn't like that deal. You may recall in 2015, he went to Congress over the head of Barack Obama effectively, to try to plead with America not sign up to what he described as a very bad deal.

I think if and when a Biden president does rejoined that agreement, Netanyahu, the Israeli defense establishment, and it should be said, many Israelis even those that oppose Netanyahu would not be very happy.

As far as the Palestinians are concerned, it's understandable why they felt a little unhappy under President Donald Trump. One of the first things he did was appoint a U.S. Ambassador who was in favor of settlements. He recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which the Palestinian see the eastern part of the city as a capital of a future independent Palestinian state.

So Palestinians, I think, after a Biden election victory will be celebrating vary wildly with President-Elect Joe Biden.

HOLMES: All right. Elliot Gotkine there in Jerusalem. Good to have you on. Appreciate it. Thanks so much.

Well someone who has not reached out to the new U.S. president-elect, Russian President Vladimir Putin. And, Russian state television, meanwhile, amplifying Donald Trump's unfounded claims of election fraud.

Matthew Chance with more on that.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the silence from the Kremlin on the U.S. Presidential election is deafening. Still no official reaction, or any official congratulations to President-Elect Biden. That may change later on today, of course.

But you also may get a sense of what the Kremlin is thinking from tightly-controlled Russian state media which is repeating President Trump's unfounded claims of U.S. election fraud.

One Russian news anchor describing what he called the sloppy way in which the U.S. election has been conducted. Adding, that all hope is lost for an honest expression of the people's will.

Also he's bracing for a much tougher tone from Washington under President-Elect Biden. He has called Russia the main threat to national security.

[01:49:54]

CHANCE: For many Russians though President Trump remains popular, widely seen as wanting improve ties with Moscow, and of course, deferential to the Russian Leader, Vladimir Putin.

But there are also some cautiously welcoming the change to what is hoped, after four years of Trump, will be a more predictable Biden administration.

Matthew Chance, CNN -- Moscow.

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HOLMES: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

We'll take a short. We'll be right back.

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Now, Joe Biden brought his party a huge victory in the presidential race. Of course he won the popular vote by millions. Well now, he is hoping Democrats can boost his power by gaining control of the U.S. Senate. It is crucial to him governing effectively.

Now, all told, the Democrats gained two seats, but they lost one as well in Senate races across the country last week.

Right now, it is an even split -- 48 to 48. But once again, all eyes will be on Georgia to see who ultimately controls the chamber.

Democrats are hoping to flip two Republican senate seats in Georgia with both races likely headed for runoffs in early January.

[01:54:53]

HOLMES: Democrat Stacey Abrams who narrowly lost the Georgia governor's race back in 2018, is being credited with registering hundreds of thousands of new voters, all in an effort to turn Georgia blue.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STACEY ABRAMS (D), FORMER GEORGIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: We know that corruption, unfortunately, has been a part of the conversation. Because David Perdue, and Kelly Loeffler decided to profit off of COVID-19, rather than help the people of Georgia.

And that will be the message that they carry, that will be the consistent message that holds true to what they've been doing since this race began and I've no doubt that the message in Georgia will be one that resonates and one that convinces Georgia voters that coming out on January 5th and supporting Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock is the way to move this country forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I'm Michael Holmes, appreciate your company.

Another hour of CNN NEWSROOM with my colleague Rosemary Church coming your way, next.

[01:55:07]

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