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Growing Frustration Among Biden Team with Lack of White House Cooperation; Biden, Nurse Share Emotional Moment During COVID Event; First-Time Jobless Claims Rise for First Time in Five Weeks. Aired 11:30-12p ET

Aired November 19, 2020 - 11:30   ET

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

[11:30:07]

MARK LEVINE, CHAIRMAN, NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL HEALTH COMMITTEE: They've done this in Europe. We should do it here.

But in the meantime, we do have a public health imperative. We have to act. We have to slow the second wave, and that means not focusing on schools but focusing on the business where there are indoor social interactions. That's where the risk is greatest.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Look, I mean, how bad is this going to get? New Yorkers did an amazing job coming together in the springtime to get past that surge. But how bad is this going to get? I mean, are you thinking the city is going to need to shutdown the way it did, turning off those valves like the governor talked about in the spring?

LEVINE: Look, cases have doubled in the last two weeks, Kate, so this is moving very fast. Our choice is either to act in targeted ways now or much more broad shutdowns later. No one wants it to come to that.

But I am confident that New York can get beyond this. We did it once in the spring, we rallied, we're going to have to rally again. It's going to be tough missing Thanksgiving but we have no other choice or we're going to be confronted with very, very difficult decisions on broad shutdowns in the near future.

BOLDUAN: And I've got to be honest, so many families are already having to face tough decisions today because schools are shutdown so quickly while other things are still open. And they now have to figure out child care and also so many kids don't even have laptops. There's a lot of reporting that there isn't even, as you said, access to the internet for a lot of these public school students, which is the lifeline when it comes to remote learning.

Councilman, thank you for coming on.

LEVINE: Thank you, Kate.

BOLDUAN: I appreciate it. Coming up for us, President Trump is still blocking access to the Biden transition team but not everyone is stonewalling. New reporting on who is communicating with the

incoming administration, that's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:35:00]

BOLDUAN: 12 of the last 16 days President Trump has had nothing on his schedule. The man who lambasted Joe Biden for hiding in his basement during the campaign when Biden was not is now hiding in his White House. 12 of the last 16 days he has been out of the public eye when he could be talking about the surge of COVID that is sweeping across the nation, could also be helping to coordinate a peaceful transition to the next administration, definitely not doing that. But we are learning some Trump officials are starting to quietly reach out to the Biden team on their own.

Let's bring in CNN's Jessica Dean in Wilmington, Delaware, and CNN's Vivian Salama in Washington for this.

Jessica, what are you hearing from the Biden transition today? Are they giving Trump more time or arey they getting more frustrated with this delay?

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kate, at the beginning of all of this, President-elect Biden himself wanted to give them time but that was now, what, two weeks ago almost and we are hearing increasingly more from the president-elect himself that also members of his team, we're hearing them saying out loud in public, really putting pressure on the Trump administration, on the General Services Administration administrator to validate this and really sign off on the formal transition process and allow them access to so much of the information they need for a seamless transition, generally. But with a pandemic raging across the country, it's even more important in these times that they're getting access to this data for Health and Human Services, from the White House coronavirus task force.

Now, President-elect Biden himself talked a little bit about this yesterday. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT: There's a whole lot of things that we just don't have available to us. So unless it's made available 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 vaccines, which is enormous promise.

So I just want to tell you that that's the only slowdown right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DEAN: So you can hear a bit of a growing sense of frustration among Biden and his team. They really want to get in there and start the process, Kate. But, unfortunately, right now, they're really left to do what they can around that system. So they're talking to governors, for example today, they're talking to drug companies that are making the vaccine. These are things they can do even without that formal transition process forging ahead.

BOLDUAN: That's a good.

Vivian, you have some reporting that current and former Trump officials have quietly started reaching out to the Biden transition team. What are you hearing?

VIVIAN SALAMA, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Kate, if there's frustration on the Biden side, there's also frustration within the Trump administration about the sort of stalling of this transition process.

I have spoken to a number of officials who particularly, after President Trump's top national security adviser, Robert O'Brien, acknowledged that it's looking likely that Biden will be the next president, of course, he didn't come all out and say it because President Trump has yet to succeed.

A lot of officials are saying, well, let's get on with it, let's at least help these people, let's put country over politics and be able to do some outreach. And so a lot of them have been doing so informally.

[11:40:00]

Now, it's really important to stress the limitations of these outreach because the General Services Administration, the office that handles the transition, has yet to recognize Joe Biden as the president-elect. And until that can happen, they cannot provide -- they cannot give access to classified information to the Biden team.

And so Trump administration officials, with their outreach, are limited in terms of what they can say. But there is still so much they can talk about. They can talk about staffing and personnel issues, the can talk about budgets, they can talk about policies on a surface level to just sort of help them out because there's a continuation, and, obviously, this is important for government.

And so all of these things said, a lot of outreach now taking place with officials saying, you know what, we want to be as helpful as we possibly can, this is a matter of national security at the end of the day, and it's not about politics. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Yes, more people could remember that. Jessica Dean, it's great to see you, Vivian, thank you so much, I really appreciate it, guys.

Health care workers are overwhelmed, exhausted, and some, once again, running out of the supplies that they need to protect themselves and their patients. The nurse whose story about that brought President- elect Joe Biden to tears, she joins us next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARY TURNER, ICU NURSE: I myself have held the hand of dying patients who were crying out for their family that they can't see. I've taken care of co-workers as they fight for their lives on a ventilator, and knowing that they got sick because of the hospital or their government hasn't protected them.

I'm sorry I'm so emotional.

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT: No.

TURNER: It's just --

BIDEN: You got me emotional.

I observe the incredible mental strain on nurses and ICU units.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: That is Mary Turner, an ICU nurse from Minnesota, speaking with President-elect Joe Biden during a virtual round table with frontline workers yesterday. You can see her and you can see her story and her words clearly impacted the president-elect.

Mary Turner has been caring for COVID patients on the night shift since this pandemic began, and her work is not letting up. Hospitalizations in Minnesota continue to climb now at their highest level yet.

Joining us right now is Mary Turner. Mary, thank you for spending some time with me. I really appreciate it. I've watched your words and your story. I've watched it a few times and it still hits me. What were you feeling in that moment speaking with the president-elect? What was behind that emotion?

TURNER: You know, I actually thought about that afterwards. And I'm going to say that not only have I been dealing with it on the frontlines, but I'm also, of course, president of Minnesota's Nurses Association. So I've been hearing through the whole pandemic from nurses all throughout my organization, and their concerns, their worries, their fears, and it has seemed like -- seemed so desolate and never ending. And when are we ever going to be able to get back to normal? When are we ever going to be able to hang up our N95s and our shields?

And yesterday with -- and also the frustration that I have had on a more global level with our federal government and their lack of response, their lack of caring.

And so, when President-elect Biden was being so empathic and compassionate and listening, I, all of a sudden, had such a surge of emotion that I can only describe as hope. For the first time, I felt like I was talking to someone who could really do something about the pandemic, and it felt so good.

You know, I've been, like I said before, pounding the pavement here on the metro level in Minnesota, trying to get the word out to people, trying to get them to understand. And I've often felt like I'm not being heard. Well, I felt heard yesterday and the nurses felt heard yesterday. And that gives me hope and it should give all the nurses across the country hope.

BOLDUAN: I can only imagine how hard it has been in these dark months to find hope in what you are seeing in the hospital every day. But your words, your story, your true raw emotion has really meant a lot to many people. Why do you think that is?

TURNER: You know what's coming out is the -- when I'm at work and when any nurse is at work, we cannot afford to have this kind of emotion. We cannot afford to have these kind of breakdowns, but we feel it. We feel it as we're holding that hand. We feel it as we're running a code.

And when we're going without breaks and we're working with more patients than we're supposed to and we're feeling unsafe because we don't feel properly protected, we feel all the anxiety, the anger, the compassion, the love, all of those emotions. But when we're doing our job, we need to be focused.

[11:50:00]

And so when we are away from that and have the chance, like I'm so grateful to have the chance, all I can say is all of that emotion just kind of pours out of me. It was such an epiphany for me yesterday to realize what's been going on, because I have been accused in the past that (INAUDIBLE) always cry on the media, et cetera, but I think that that's what's going on, is because I'm so desperate for people to take this seriously.

And I can use my emotion to try to get through to people because it's all bottled up. And nurses would tell you the same thing across the country, it is all bottled up inside us. Because at work, we can't afford to be emotional, we have to be focused and professional and constantly be doing our job.

BOLDUAN: And that gets at something that I think, that I wonder if you think is part of it too, just the sheer exhaustion that nurses and doctors, all health care professionals and frontline workers are experiencing this many months into this battle and still facing new surges. I mean, can you describe just the physical and mental toll that ten months of dealing with this is having, and you're facing another surge coming?

TURNER: Right. So, on our floor, and like I said, the first COVID ICU unit at North Memorial Robbinsdale, Minnesota, and so we have been dealing with it since the end of February. And at the beginning, we probably had anxieties that the rest of the -- whoever didn't have to deal with it back then, and here's why, it' because we had to first learn about COVID.

And every week, it was something new that was being thrown at us. First, it was respiratory, then it was the circulatory system, then it was the heart, it was the kidneys, and then the neurological system. And we were trying treatments and what didn't work, and did work and didn't work.

And so we've got it down. I have to be proud to say, I work with a very expert whole team of people at North Memorial who we know what we're doing and we have very good success rate with getting people better and out of there.

But -- so what I ask my co-workers this past weekend when I worked, they said, so how are we feeling about this? And they're like, we're just feeling tired. We would love to just not have to wear N95s and go into a room without full barrier.

In the nursing world, it is always, oh, my goodness, do I have to float? That's or big thing, no one ever wants to float. Now, it is a joy because people from our unit might be able to just actually walk into a patient room without getting fully garbed up. So, I mean, other nurses on this -- hearing this wouldn't appreciate what I just said. So we're tired. But there's no time for even that because we know the worst is yet to come.

BOLDUAN: Do you feel that Joe Biden heard you?

TURNER: Oh, definitely, definitely. And that he is such a compassionate man. You can only go by seeing him on T.V., et cetera, but to actually be that close to him in a virtual sense and talking to him, he just radiates such empathy and compassion. It is unmistakable. And I truly do hope that he fulfills his promises that he has made and I believe he will.

BOLDUAN: Mary, thank you for your strength and for using your voice.

TURNER: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:55:00]

BOLDUAN: For the first time in more than a month, a number of Americans filing for first time jobless benefits is increasing. And new research finds by the end of next month, as many as 12 million Americans could lose unemployment benefits under the CARES Act, all of that putting more pressure on local charities and organizations across the country.

CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich is joining us now at a food distribution site in New York. And what are you hearing, Vanessa?

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kate. We are seeing a lot of people here that are in line to get their Thanksgiving meals. The organizers said that they budgeted for about 1,200 meals. They think that food is going to run out long before the day is over.

If you just look at this line, it extends all the way down this city block and wraps about four times around on various city blocks. People here are waiting for Thanksgiving meals. The organizer told us that there's been a 75 percent increase in the amount of people that need food, and this is one of them.

I want to introduce you to Clemencia, who is in line, who just got her Thanksgiving meal. Have you ever been to a food pantry, Clemencia?

CLEMENCIA VEGA, NEW YORK CITY RESIDENT: Yes, but it was ten years ago. I found out about this one by my neighbor and really appreciated that he told me because, right now, I'm like really going through a lot with these food stamps, did all my food stamps, I have to pay my rent with my kids' disability checks, and it hasn't been easy at all.

YURKEVICH: What have the last eight months been like for you with COVID? Have you been able to get enough food for your family?

VEGA: At one point, yes. They started giving me extra food stamps, but then they stopped. So I put it upon myself now to just try to go ahead and go to pantries. And now besides this, I'm going to have to have every chance that I get.

YURKEVICH: In the next six months, one word to describe how you think the next six months are going to be like for you.

VEGA: I think it is going to be hard, very hard. I've been fighting to get food stamps and it's not easy. I mean, I have two kids with disability and I need to feed them.

[12:00:06]

YURKEVICH: And that's why you're here today.

VEGA: Yes.