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Sen. Cruz Attacks Democratic Senator over Mask Comments; NYC to Close Public Schools, All Remote Learning as of Thursday; North Dakota Hospital to Open COVID Unit Amid Record Hospitalizations; Biden Team Responds after Trump Campaign Files for Partial Recount in Wisconsin; Biden Pushes Ahead with Transition with No Help from Trump; Biden: Trump Refusal to Cooperate Could Impact COVID Response & Vaccine; Georgia On Track to Finish Election Audit Today; $125 Million+ Spent on Ads in 2 Georgia Senate Runoff Races. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired November 18, 2020 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. DAN SULLIVAN (R-AK): I don't wear a mask when I'm speaking, like most Senators.
SEN. SHERROD BROWN (D-OH): I know you don't need my instruction, but there clearly isn't much interest in this body in public health.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Now Republican Senator Ted Cruz, this is what he tweeted. He said it was "idiotic."
He said that "Brown wears a mask to speak when nobody is remotely near him as an ostentatious sign of fake virtue. Dan Sullivan was over 50 feet away. Last I checked, 50 feet is more than six feet."
Cruz, of course, omitting a key fact there, as we mentioned yesterday, that Sullivan -- look, he's within spitting distance of several Senate core staffers. They're right there.
Senator Brown pointed out to our Chris Cuomo that there are others off-camera that you don't see that are exposed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BROWN: Every time a Senator stands up and speak, there's a Senate stenographer about six feet away. And Senators that don't wear masks are putting them at risk.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: In an interview with FOX News last night, Dan Sullivan gave his response and it wasn't about safety. It wasn't about essential workers on the Senate floor. Instead, it sounded like a kid not wanting to be told to eat his vegetables.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SULLIVAN: Some of these far-left Senators, like Senator Brown, just can't help themselves on their desire to want to lecture people on these kinds of issues, whether it's lecturing other U.S. Senators or lecturing working families. I think it's a put-off.
People recognize the challenges. We'll get through these challenges. But to be lectured and preached to --
(CROSSTALK)
SULLIVAN: -- by senior officials is something that I think is not -- I certainly didn't appreciate it. But --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Let's pause here to remind you how we started this segment. A Senator spoke Monday on the Senate floor without a mask. On Tuesday, tested positive for the coronavirus.
Several Senators have tested positive in recent months, disproportionately Republican. Yet, here's what Dan Sullivan says.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SULLIVAN: The Senate should be showing the rest of the country that, yes, we can work through the pandemic safely --
UNIDENTIFIED FOX HOST: Yes.
SULLIVAN: -- and we can still get the work of the country done.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: He says the Senate should be showing the American people that it's still safe to work.
Well, the Senate is showing the American people something. It's showing us what doctors and medical experts have been warning us for months not to do.
It is a teachable moment because it's a cautionary tale.
And ahead, in North Dakota, the governor just issued a mask mandate after a record number of coronavirus deaths in his state. I'll be speaking to the head of a hospital there who's says he's building a COVID unit because of the surge in cases.
Plus, Trump campaign lawyers filed an official petition moments ago for a recount in counties in Wisconsin. Hear how the Biden team is responding, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:36:51]
KEILAR: We have some breaking news just into CNN. New York City schools are going to start closing. They're going to be closing starting tomorrow.
There are test positivity rates that are on the brink of 3 percent there, which is the key threshold as a second wave is enveloping the city.
I want to bring in CNN's Bianna Golodryga to follow this.
If any city knows, it's New York City. So tell us what let to this decision, Bianna.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, it was a really big setback for the city, obviously, the largest city in the country and the largest city to have in-person school.
Some 300,000 students were currently attending in-person school and 700,000 opted for remote learning.
So for those 300,000, the city mayor just sent out a tweet, saying that school will be temporarily close tomorrow.
I want to read you the tweet from Mayor Bill De Blasio.
He said, "New York City has reached the 3 percent testing positivity seven-day average threshold. Unfortunately, this means public school buildings will be closed as of tomorrow, Thursday, November 19th out an abundance of caution. We must fight back the second wave of COVID- 19."
The school chancellor sent a similar e-mail to principals throughout the city.
And a really big setback for the city as well because, even though we have seen a rise in positivity rates, we have not seen schools be the vectors that many people had been concerned about.
They're not the super spreaders. In fact, the most recent data that the city had been able to gather shows that just 1.7 percent of students tested positive through pool testing.
This is also a setback for the country as they're trying to figure out what schools will be doing.
The reason the mayor had said earlier he would be setting this 3 percent threshold no matter what is because this is the arrangement he made with the school unions, with the principals' unions and the teachers' unions.
However, he says he will look back and see if they can change that threshold, if there's any way they can navigate a different threshold, given the information they know now.
A setback for the city. There has been a lot of frustration there today because there had been a 10:30 a.m. press conference that the mayor was scheduled to hold. That never happened.
Four hours later, reporters were still waiting, parents were still waiting. And the governor big-footed him, as he has done many times, by having his own press conference.
A lot of conflicting data. It appeared no one wanted to make the final decision until the mayor just sent that tweet right now.
Parents will have to reorganize their schedules to have their children at home for the next few days at least.
This is a big concern for education experts. Because if you think of the way that European countries are handling this, they are prioritizing keeping schools open throughout the second wave and closing other businesses.
A lot of people questioning, why is in-room dining at restaurants still available and still happening in New York City when school children will be kept at home.
So we'll be following this story for you. But a big setback for New York City -- Brianna?
KEILAR: A big setback.
You've been doing great work tracking all of this. Bianna, thank you so much for staying on top of that story.
Coronavirus cases in North Dakota are skyrocketing. Active cases have doubled there in the last month and in recent weeks. There have been a record number of hospitalizations.
Now Sanford Health Bismarck is opening a 20-bed COVID unit because it's hospitals are so overwhelmed.
[14:40:04]
I want to bring in the president of that medical center, Dr. Michael LeBeau.
I know you say that the opening of the facility should be a wake-up call.
Thanks for joining us.
And tell us why it's a wake-up call.
DR. MICHAEL LEBEAU, PRESIDENT, SANFORD HEALTH BISMARCK: Yes, we've been working hard on figuring out how to work together as a state.
As we look at current hospital beds and what we see is the need, we're at a shortfall. So we're all working together to try to get new beds online.
As far as a wake-up call, this is obviously nontraditional medicine. This is a building that's close to our footprint. But it's a separate building, and one that we're opening up as essentially a ward.
We hope it gets everybody's attention and it really speaks to the need or importance of limiting the spread and slowing progression of the disease.
KEILAR: So, you know, when exactly is it opening? And can you just tell you how it's going to work?
LEBEAU: Yes. So, for starters, it's an old surgical building. There's three operating rooms and then a recovery room.
We're going to take the recovery room first and we're going to make it kind of a ward with approximately 10 beds. And then we plan on using the operating rooms for 10 beds.
It's about two blocks from our hospital. We are working on all of the details, the operational plans real time. We have a group of about 40 people. Plus, our entire corporation is working on all of the resources it takes to get this open.
It's been a very aggressive plan. We are standing up an empty building in one week, so it takes a lot of people, a lot of effort to get this done.
As far as who is there, we actually plan on moving our stable COVID patients. And really, I think, that gives us just a little more flexibility as we take care of, you know, the rush of folks coming in.
KEILAR: So this is like an annex a couple blocks from your medical -- your normal medical facility.
So it sounds like the people, when you say they're stable -- are those folks on who are not on ventilators?
LEBEAU: Correct. Our plan is to take our stablist folks and use our special care unit for them. It allows us then more operating room or more space in our hospital.
We are working on ICU capacity as well. This actually hopes -- we hope this will off-load some of our current operations in our hospital and give us the ability to increase ICU beds as well.
KEILAR: Well, Doctor, thank you so much for being with us. It sounds like you're getting very creative.
The good news is people in your community and across the country don't need to, right? We know what they need to do, masks, social distancing, Washington hands and taking other careful measures.
Sir, thanks for being with us.
LEBEAU: Hey, my pleasure.
KEILAR: Moments ago, President-Elect Biden speaking out on the Trump administration's refusal to cooperate with the transition. And he says it could put them weeks or months behind on a vaccine. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:47:48]
KEILAR: CNN has just learned that the Trump campaign is seeking a partial recount in Wisconsin, but it only involves two counties, and they are both in Democratic strongholds.
CNN's Jeff Zeleny is following this for us.
Jeff, the Trump campaign filed all of its paperwork for this recount moments ago. Is there anything you can tell us about it at this point?
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brianna, they did file their paperwork. And they are asking for this recount in two counties alone, two Democratic counties, the largest counties in the state, Milwaukee and Dayne County, which is home to Madison.
But in the petition that they filed a short time ago, they made claims of mistakes and fraud but did not give any specific examples of mistakes or fraud.
So this is one of the latest examples we have seen looking for recounts.
I will point out that Joe Biden now has won about 21,000 or so more votes in the state of Wisconsin, about the same margin that Donald Trump won over Hillary Clinton four years ago. So the margin is not an issue necessarily.
But four years ago, Brianna, there was a recount in that race that was produced by Jill Stein, the third-party candidate. And 131 votes were affected overall. They were added to the president's tally.
So that's how many votes in a statewide recount were impacted.
There's no suggestion or evidence that there will be enough votes to be found in the recount of the two counties.
But they are going forward with them. The law allows that. And the reason it's happening now is they had to make that move by 5:00 p.m. in Wisconsin this afternoon.
KEILAR: And even though there's a lack of cooperation from the Trump administration, President-Elect Biden's transition team is trying to push ahead with transition planning.
And he actually just wrapped up a virtual roundtable with health care workers. He's warning that this delay could have real impacts on the COVID response.
Tell us about this.
ZELENY: Brianna, he is doing exactly that. Look, there's a growing reality settling in among most Republicans in Washington and even inside the White House. But the president still has not directed or allowed his General Services Administration, that obscure federal agency, to ascertain the outcome of the election.
That means transition funding is being withheld. And even more importantly, they're not allowed to have meetings between the Biden advisers and the Trump advisers.
[14:50:06]
This matters the most on the planning for the vaccine, the distribution of the vaccine.
A short time ago, the president-elect was speaking to health care workers on the front line. He said this about why his team needs access.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Soon, we're going to be behind by weeks or months being able to put together the whole initiative relating to the biggest promise we have with two drug companies coming along and finding 95 percent effectiveness, efficiency in the vaccine, which has enormous promise.
So I just want to tell you that that's the only slowdown right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENY: So he's calling it a slowdown. He's also called it a matter of life and death.
And his advisers certainly are speaking in much louder tones than that, really imploring the government to begin allowing this access.
But, Brianna, we are two weeks and one day since Election Day, almost two weeks since the election was projected and still no movement from inside the GSA.
And HHS secretary said, look, we're not going to cooperate until the GSA makes this ascertainment.
So all of this, we should point out, sits in the hands of the president, who we still have not seen yet today -- Brianna?
KEILAR: Not seen.
All right, Jeff Zeleny, live for us from Wilmington, thank you.
Next, we're live from Georgia as the audit of votes is wrapping up there.
Plus, we're going to talk about those two Senate runoff races that are capturing the nation's attention and a lot of cash.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [14:56:16]
KEILAR: Georgia is on track to finish an audit of its election results today where CNN projects Joe Biden will win.
Biden is now leading Trump by more than 12,000 votes. And that is according to the Republican secretary of state's office there in Georgia.
Our CNN senior national correspondent, Kyung Lah, is with us now.
Kyung, tell us what is the latest. What's happening with this audit?
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The very latest we're hearing from the top voting managers in the state is that they are on track to finish this hand audit, this hand count by 11:59 p.m. tonight.
That is ahead of the state deadline for certification of the vote, and that deadline is on Friday.
And of the counties that have already completed this audit, they haven't found anything unusual.
It is typical that during a vote and if there's an audit or recount that you come across minor discrepancies.
But as far as any whole-scale changes or anything large or widespread, Brianna, not happening.
The results are not expected to change here in Georgia -- Brianna?
KEILAR: And right now, after this is done, it's not like we're going to stop watching Georgia. The whole country is watching Georgia for the two Senate runoff races there.
More than $125 million has already been spent on ads, and we still have six weeks to go here.
Is Georgia feeling the pressure with so much at stake?
LAH:: Absolutely. You hear it from the voters. You certainly sense it from the campaigns.
You mentioned that figure $125 million. That really speaks to how much is at stake. It is control of the Senate, the levers of government here, on whether or not -- which party will be able to control the Senate.
And so what we saw is a bit of an unusual ad, a joint ad from the Republicans. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY) (voice-over): If Democrats win the two runoff elections in Georgia, Republicans lose control of the Senate. This means radical liberal policies, like the Green New Deal, Medicare
For All and defunding our police, could become a reality.
That's why I need your help. Please visit gabattleground.com and donate so Republicans win the Georgia runoff.
SEN. DAVID PERDUE (R-GA): I'm David Perdue.
SEN. KELLY LOEFFLER (R-GA): And I'm Kelly Loeffler.
PERDUE: And we approve this message.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: So the message absolutely clear there, a joint message from the Republican incumbent Senators.
We're seeing it on the campaign trail and joint appearances from the Republicans.
But also, on the Democratic side from the challengers, Jon Ossoff and Reverend Raphael Warnock.
And we're also hearing from Ossoff, simply attacking the sitting Senator, Republican Senator Kelly Loeffler -- excuse me -- David Perdue, for deciding to skip the debate.
Here's Jon Ossoff.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON OSSOFF, (D), GEORGIA SENATE CANDIDATE: Perdue is chicken.
(CHEERING)
OSSOFF: If David Perdue doesn't want to answer questions in public about his record and debate his opponent, that's fine. He just shouldn't run for re-election to the U.S. Senate.
(CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: And, again, he is talking about Senator David Perdue.
Senator Kelly Loeffler has said that she will show up at the debate to debate her Democratic challenger, Reverend Warnock.
And as far as what the people holding this debate are going to do, Brianna, they decided to put an empty podium if Senator Perdue does not show -- Brianna?
KEILAR: That may incentivize him. That would be very embarrassing.
Kyung Lah, thank you so much, live for us from Atlanta.
Our special coverage will continue now with Brooke Baldwin.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: All right, we'll take it.
I'm Brooke Baldwin. Thank you so much for being with me. You're watching CNN.
[15:00:06]
He may be on his way out and we may not be seeing very much of him these days.
