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Biden Warns Trump Stonewalling May Delay Virus Efforts; Top U.S. Vaccine Adviser on Potential Logistical Nightmare; Emirates: We can Bridge the Gap in Vaccine Distribution; Airlines Detail Plans to Return Boeing 737 Max to Service; Warp Speed: Zero To 250,000 Deaths In 10 Months; Australian Special Forces Alleged War Crimes In Afghanistan; Iota Decimates Nicaragua, Honduras And Peru; Chinese Big Pharma Moves Ahead With Experimental Vaccines; Biden Zooms With Healthcare Workers, Seeks To Understand; Upon FDA Approval, Initial Vaccine Could Be Weeks Away. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired November 19, 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]
JOHN VAUSE, ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from around the world. I'm John Vause.
And coming up on CNN NEWSROOM.
At least one American every minute is dying from the coronavirus. A soaring daily death toll has pushed the total number of lives lost in the U.S. during the pandemic to more than 250,000.
As the pandemic spirals out of control, President Elect Joe Biden is becoming increasingly frustrated with Donald Trump's refusal to begin the transition of power.
And in Australia, an internal investigation claims credible evidence of dozens of war crimes committed by special forces while deployed to Afghanistan.
It's hard to imagine at this point how much worse the pandemic in the United States could be. It seems each new day sees a new record for infections, hospital admissions and deaths.
More than a quarter million of a people have died in less than 10 months, the highest death toll in the world by far and much higher than even the most dire predictions of the White House.
During the most early stages of the outbreak, officials talked of a worst case scenario for the entire pandemic from start to finish, no more than 240,000 dead.
But as bad as it is right now, the pandemic's most deadly days are still to come.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES (On Camera): When you look at the heat map of the country, where the colors that get darker and redder show that there's increased activity, it's almost the entire country.
So things are going in the wrong direction in an arena of increased risk, namely the cooler and colder weather.
I mean, let's go, folks. What about that don't you understand?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: That's Dr. Anthony Fauci, the leading U.S. specialist on infectious diseases. He's also overseen other pandemics for the last three decades.
And he is yet another official who has yet to speak to the Biden administration as the White House continues to delay the transition.
President Elect Biden has warned stalling by the Trump Administration could delay distribution of a vaccine.
But a vaccine will not saves lives as the pandemic spirals out of control in almost every corner of the United States.
CNN's Alexandra Field reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEXANDRA FIELDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (Voice Over): An about face in New York City, the largest school district in the country, shutting its doors tomorrow.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO, N.Y. (On Camera): I want to affirm that as much as we are unhappy today that this moment was reached, we are resolve to keep fighting. That's what New Yorkers too.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (Voice Over): The city's average three percent positivity rate triggering the lockdown, as numbers move in the wrong direction nationwide.
The daily death toll on Tuesday at its highest number since May, 1707 lives lost. Six states reporting their highest number of deaths on a single day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST (On Camera): If you are alarmed at the 1,700 deaths a day, two or three weeks we're going to see 3,000 deaths a day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (Voice Over): Demand for tests is fueling long lines from Massachusetts all the way to Illinois. Hospitals are dealing daily with record setting numbers.
Scotland County Hospital in Memphis, Missouri is so stretched by COVID cases it's willing to accept volunteers with health care experience.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. JEFF DAVIS, CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER, SCOTLAND COUNTY HOSPITAL (On Camera): We could use any kind of caregiving aid or you even can have nursing aides volunteer work in the hospital.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (Voice Over): Amid the suffering, the promise of a vaccine is grow even stronger.
Pfizer says more data now shows its vaccine is 95 percent effective, that there are no serious safety concerns and that it's preparing to seek emergency use authorization from the FDA on Friday.
Moderna has also said its vaccine is 95 percent effective.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEX AZAR, U.S. SECRETARY OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES (On Camera): By the end of December, we expect have about 40 million doses of these two vaccines available for distribution, pending FDA authorization.
Enough to vaccinate about 20 million of our most vulnerable Americans. And production, of course, would continue to ramp up after that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (Voice Over): And a major step forward on the testing front. The FDA on Tuesday authorizing a 30 minute at-home rapid test.
Developments bringing some hope as the country faces more dark days ahead.
People in Michigan stocked up for the three-week pause that starts today. Oregon is implementing a two-week freeze. Ohio will have a curfew and Illinois's measures fall just short of the shutdown.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES (On Camera): We need some fundamental public health measures that everyone should be adhering to.
[01:05:00]
Not a disjointed one state says one thing, the other state says another thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (Voice Over): Like the two Dakotas taking vastly different approaches to skyrocketing cases.
In North Dakota, a governor reversing course over the weekend on masks, now mandating them. In South Dakota, a governor still choosing not to take action.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. KRISTI NOEM (R-S.D.) (On Camera): I've consistently said that people that want to wear masks should wear masks and people who don't shouldn't be shamed because they choose not to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FIELDS (On Camera): Given that promising news on the vaccine front, the key question now is how quickly could that vaccine be made available, how quickly would it be distributed?
Well, the emergency use authorization could come as soon as December 10th. After that, it may be just 24 hours before some limited distribution is able to begin.
That would be distribution to some of the most vulnerable among us.
In New York, Alexandra Fields, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Dr. Celine Gounder is on the Biden Harris transition COVID advisory board and she is with us now from New York.
So, Dr. Gounder, first of all, congratulations on your appointment. You've got quite the job ahead. And good to see you.
DR. CELINE GOUNDER, BIDEN COVID-19 ADVISORY BOARD MEMBER: It's good to see you.
VAUSE: OK. Well, the president elect has talked about the potential deadly consequences caused by Trump delaying this transfer of power.
But what are the key pieces of government data that the incoming administration needs that it's been denied access to? Just some of the big ones here.
GOUNDER: Well, I think understanding where we are in terms of our supply chain, what materials are where, what is the quality control being done around them and how easily can we deploy them to other parts of the country where they may be needed even more?
This might include everything from gowns and gloves to ventilators. And one of the things that we found out earlier on in the pandemic is that many of the ventilators that were in the stockpile were actually not functional.
So we really need to know numbers, locations, quality So that we can get a sense for what else we might need to be getting our hands on, and how best to use the limited resources we have. VAUSE: Yes. I remember apparently the maintenance contract for those
ventilators had lapsed, no one renewed it. About 3,000 of them were just not operational at all.
What was interesting this week is that we had a nurse from South Dakota, she left many people stunned when she talked about patients who had die from COVID-19 but still in denial about the virus.
And there's a similar story now from another nurse, Ashley Bartholomew (ph), she's from El Paso in Texas.
She tweeted a conversation she had with a older COVID patient. The news about the pandemic was playing in the background.
She tweets --
"He mentions hating fake news. He says, "I don't think COVID's really more than a flu." I clarified, "Now you think differently though?" He replies, "No, the same. I should just take vitamins for my immune system. They" -- -- the news -- "are making it a big deal."
She goes on saying --
"I'm shocked, I'm at a loss of words. Here I am basically wrapped in tarp, here he is in a COVID ICU. How can you deny the validity of COVID? How is this possible?
Misinformation is literally killing people in mass."
And most of that misinformation has come from one person. The president.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This is a flu. This is like a flu.
And it is a little bit different but in some ways it's easier and in some ways it's a little bit tougher.
It's going to disappear. One day, it's like a miracle, it will disappear.
And this is their new hoax.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Many of the bad decisions about this pandemic can be rolled back. More testing, more contact tracers, more PPE.
How do you roll back misinformation which is now ingrained in some people that they're willing to die before admitting the pandemic is serious and real?
GOUNDER: Yes. I think this may well be the most damaging aspect of the current administration's response is the way it has sown mistrust, has propagated conspiracy theories.
This is not the first time I've seen this kind of thing happen. I was an Ebola aid worker in West Africa. They were in the middle of -- some of these countries in the middle of their own presidential elections.
And the response to Ebola became very much tied up with the politicization, the politics, of those elections. Unfortunately, a similar thing happened where people said Ebola's a hoax, Ebola's not real.
But I think a striking difference is that once Ebola hit some of these communities, most families really started to take it seriously. They had to see it with their own eyes but once they did, it was really a wake up call.
And I have to say it's really heartbreaking to me to see Americans getting sick with COVID, in the ICU with COVID, on their death bed with COVID and still not believing this is real.
VAUSE: Yes. The president elect held a zoom roundtable discussion with those on the front lines of the pandemic.
Mary Turner is an emergency nurse from Minnesota and she spoke in very stark terms about the impact the pandemic has had on the healthcare workers of this country.
[01:10:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARY TURNER, INTENSIVE CARE NURSE (On Camera): The physical impacts of this virus have been devastating.
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 coworkers 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 (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES (On Camera): No.
TURNER (On Camera): It's just --
BIDEN (Voice Over): You got me emotional.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: It was a very telling moment. But away from the exchange with the president elect, what seems incredibly unfair right now is to ask doctors and nurses and others to, again, put themselves and their families at risk to save lives in a pandemic which could have been under control if everyone had worn a mask and kept their distance. GOUNDER: Yes. The impact on the health care system has really been severe. We've been functioning in rationing, scarcity mode when it comes to personal protective equipment. People are exhausted, emotionally, physically.
We've have also been under attack by politicians including the president himself, who've accused us of trying to make money by billing for COVID.
The combination of all of these things and then seeing our fellow Americans not always being willing to make some sacrifices themselves to help save lives has been really demoralizing.
And this is really just a great tragedy for all of us.
VAUSE: Dr. Gounder, good to see you. Thanks for being with us.
GOUNDER: My pleasure.
VAUSE: This Friday, Pfizer and its German partner, BioNTech, plan to apply for emergency use of their coronavirus vaccine in the U.S.
Final results of phase three trials show the drug is 95 percent effective, that's up from the initial 90 percent. Notably, no serious safety concerns.
CNN's Fred Pleitgen spoke with the CEO of BioNTech who says initial distribution could begin in just weeks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UGUR SAHIN, CEO, BIONTECH (On Camera): We might get an authorization or conditional approval already in 2020. Which might help us to start distribution of the first vaccine batches already in 2020.
Our goal is to supply several hundred million of doses in the first four to five months in 2021. This will already have an impact, beginning impact, on the control of COVID-19.
PLEITGEN (On Camera): Are you confident that these vaccines are now -- or the existence of these vaccines, signal the beginning of the end of the pandemic?
SAHIN (On Camera): I am confident that if everything goes well and if we have a well organized vaccine supply that we could have normal winter 2021, normal summer and winter 2021.
PLEITGEN (On Camera): The data that you released today showed very good efficacy in older people because they're obviously some of the most vulnerable. Can you just walk us through how important that is?
SAHIN (On Camera): Now we see that we have an overall efficacy of 95 percent. And in elderly people, we have more than 94 percent.
So that means there's no difference. There's no difference between the different ages and there's no difference between the ethnicities. Which makes, of course, the pandemic supply and control very, very, very efficient.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Our thanks to Frederik Pleitgen there speaking with the CEO of BioNTech.
Now China is developing five potential vaccines with thousands of volunteers in various countries now taking part in phase three trials.
But some of those countries have already authorized distribution of the Chinese vaccine. And that's raising alarm among health experts.
Here is CNN's Ivan Watson.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN SNR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (On Camera): China is a big player in the global race to develop a coronavirus vaccine.
As of now, Chinese companies have five different experimental vaccines that have advanced to phase three trials in different countries around the world.
The Chinese government just declared vaccine development a top priority.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZHAO LIJIAN, SPOKESPERSON, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY OF AFFAIRS (On Camera, Through Translator): Chinese vaccine companies are making every effort to promote vaccine research and development.
TRANSLATOR (Voice Over): Several vaccines have already entered phase three clinical trials.
The Chinese government has also been actively supporting Chinese companies to cooperate with other countries in vaccine research and development.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON (On Camera): The company, Sinovac, calls its vaccine Coronach. It's being tested on volunteers in Brazil, Turkey and Indonesia.
And though it's still in the experimental phase, the Indonesian government announced plans to start administering millions of doses to citizens as early as next month under emergency use authorization.
The company Sinopharm has two vaccine candidates which are being tested in the Gulf, North Africa and South America.
[01:15:00]
Among those who volunteered for a Sinopharm experimental vaccine, the UAE's foreign minister and the ruler of Dubai who both tweeted about it. A top executive at Sinopharm says some 350,000 in China have already
taken one of its experimental vaccines.
CanSino Biologics experimental vaccine was co-developed with the Academy of Military Medical Sciences and it has been approved for use by the Chinese military.
It's also being tested in Russia, Pakistan and Mexico. The Mexican government says it has an agreement to purchase 35 million doses of CanSino's product.
Finally, the government of Uzbekistan reportedly announced it will be conducting phase three trials of experimental vaccine developed by Anhui Zhifei Longcom Biopharmaceuticals.
Some health experts are concerned about vaccines being widely distributed for emergency use before phase three trials are complete.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. PETER HOTEZ, DEAN, NATIONAL SCHOOL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE (On Camera): This is the part that I worry about with both the Russian vaccines and the China vaccines is the quality control and all of the assurance to know that these vaccines are being adequately tested for safety and efficacy.
And unfortunately we don't have a lot of information about that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DR. LENA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST (On Camera): It really is important that we don't take shortcuts to the science. The protocols are there for a reason, they're there to protect people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON (On Camera): That sentiment echoed this week by one of the authors of a study on Sinovac's vaccine candidate --
WATSON (Voice Over): "CoronaVac could be a attractive option" -- he wrote. "However data from phase three studies will be crucial before any recommendations can be made."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: We head to Peru now where one of the countries where phase three trials of the Chinese vaccine is underway.
Thousands of volunteers are needed there and journalist Guillermo Galdos reports on why some are willing to take the risk.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) GUILLERMO GALDOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (Voice Over): Eight a.m. at the Peruvian Institute Cayetano Heredia in Lima. The classroom is full.
These are not students, they are volunteers for China's Sinopharm vaccine for COVID-19.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, Captioned): Do you know about this vaccine that is being tested?
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, Captioned): Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): China is looking to prove it has a fully functioning vaccine and has been undergoing clinical trials in COVID hotspots around the world.
After China and the United Arab Emirates Peru has the third highest number of participants.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, captioned): Have you seen the release form?
KATIA MAMANI, EXPERIMENTAL VACCINE VOLUNTEER (On Camera, captioned): Yes, I read it.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, captioned): Everything clear?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): Katia Mamani is 30 years old and comes from Cerro El Pino, a neighborhood in Lima heavily affected by COVID-19. She signed up for the clinical trial as soon as registration opened a few weeks ago.
Doctors have to give her a thorough medical examination to be sure she's a good candidate for the vaccine. It's a long process.
First she must give blood and take a COVID test to confirm that she's not infected with the virus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, captioned): Everything is good. You are ready to participate in the study. Many thanks for trusting us. Welcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MAMANI (On Camera, Captioned): I feel emotional and grateful to participate in the study. It is important. If the vaccine works it will be made available to the rest of the population. (END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): Three hours later, and Katia is finally cleared to receive the vaccine. She is nervous.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, captioned): Good afternoon, senorita.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): Doctors have warned her that there may be some side effects like fever or nausea.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER (On Camera, captioned): Breathe in.
GALDOS (Voice Over): More than 7,000 people have already been given China's Sinopharm vaccine in Peru. Scientists aim to reach 12,000 volunteers before the end of the year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (On Camera): Do you think, Doctor, are we being the guinea pigs of the world?
DR. GERMAN MALAGA, CHIEF INVESTOR, SINOPHARM VACCINE TRIAL (On Camera): We have to keep in mind that previous to Peru, 45,000 people have been vaccinated.
But the problem is that it was in countries where they don't have new cases. So without new cases, it's very difficult to demonstrate effectivity of the vaccine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): Peru was one of the worst affected by the COVID- 19 pandemic which makes it an ideal ground to test the vaccine. More than 40,000 people have died here and the disease is still far from under control.
The Peruvian government is hopeful they can have a working vaccine within the next two months.
We went to see Katia in Cerro El Pino to see how she was doing. She received the vaccine yesterday.
[01:20:00]
MAMANI (On Camera, Captioned): Hello.
GALDOS (Voice Over, Captioned): Hello, may I speak to Miss Katia Mamani.
MAMANI (On Camera, Captioned): Yes, this is she.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): Katia will get a call every day for the next year to check how she's doing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (On Camera, Captioned): Can you tell me why you decided to get the vaccine?
MAMANI (On Camera, Captioned): I get the vaccine to be protected because all my neighbors on my street were sick. It was horrible to see how they removed their bodies from their homes.
GALDOS (Captioned): Do you trust the Chinese vaccine?
MAMANI (On Camera, Captioned): They say the virus came from a lab in China so they must know how to fight against it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GALDOS (Voice Over): But with coronavirus infections still on the rise, people like Katia are more important than ever.
Guillermo Galdos for CNN. Lima.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Still to come. Accusations of world crimes committed by Australian special forces while deployed to Afghanistan.
And the country's most senior general wants a criminal investigation.
Also ahead. Parts of Central America grappling with rain and flash flooding after two deadly hurricanes sweep through the region.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: In Australia, an internal military investigation claims to have evidence of war crimes committed by special forces deployed to Afghanistan.
The inspector general's report documents the alleged killing of 39 prisoners, farmers and civilians between 2009 and 2013. Some of the accused are still serving in the military.
Here's more from that report.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGUS CAMPBELL, CHIEF, AUSTRALIAN DEFENSE FORCE (On Camera): Those alleged who have been unlawfully killed were all people under control -- in lay terms, prisoners, farmers or other civilians.
This shameful record includes alleged instances in which new patrol members were coerced to shoot a prisoner in order to achieve that soldier's first kill in a appalling practice known as blooding.
(END VIDEO CLIP) VAUSE: And Australia's most senior general has apologized to Afghanistan, to families of the victims and to the Australian people. He now wants a criminal investigation by federal police.
Parts of Central America still reeling from what was once Hurricane Iota. The deadly storm has now dissipated but is still causing flash floods.
In Nicaragua, Iota's death toll stands in 16. In Honduras, six people are dead, one is missing. And thousands have been forced from their homes.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEO VEBRI, RESIDENT (On Camera, Through Translator): There are children, there are sick people, there is no medicine. The houses are destroyed. Now what am I going to sleep in, where are the children going to sleep?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:25:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ESTEFANIA JACOBO WASHINGTON, RESIDENT (On Camera, Through Translator): First, Hurricane Eta came and destroyed my house. They still didn't give me anything. And now that the other one has arrived, the house is also destroyed.
We're in the street without clothes, without food.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: CNN's Gustavo Valdes has this report now from Honduras and the widespread flooding.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUSTAVO VALDES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (On Camera): We're in San Pedro de Copan in Honduras. Behind me the River Arudo (ph) Rio Arundo, which locals tell me Spanish about 15 meters, about 45 feet.
You can see the bridge, you can see the debris still left behind from where the river overtoppled this bridge and left debris over.
After the storm passed by, the locals came to find out that even though the bridge is standing, the rest of the road is gone.
We're talking about 100 meters near river that now -- you can see the strength of this water that keeps coming from the mountains in Honduras.
This is not the only damage associated with Iota.
We know that in Nicaragua the government reports at least 16 people dead, and they're still trying to evaluate the damage because the communication and access is hard. A situation similar to what we're seeing here in Honduras.
In Guatemala, the government, the army has had rescue operations all day Wednesday trying to reach areas that are flooded. Rivers are overflowing their banks.
The problem with Iota is that the rain continues to flood in -- to fall in this region and they expect that all the water falling in the mountains of the area of Central America, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala, that water will continue to create flood issues and other problems for the region.
Gustavo Valdes, CNN, Honduras.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: To find out how you can help hurricane victims in South America, please go to our website CNN.com.
Well, when we come back. The real-world consequences of a pandemic raging out of control across the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TURNER (On Camera): We need to act now. We need to act quickly to protect our healthcare workers so that we can save as many lives as possible. Thank you.
BIDEN (On Camera): Mary --
TURNER: I'm sorry I'm so emotional.
BIDEN: No.
TURNER: It's just --
BIDEN: You've got me emotional.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:30:09]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.
Well President Donald Trump has not spoken publicly about the soaring number of COVID-19 deaths in the United States.
Meantime, controlling the virus is president-elect Jo Biden's most urgent priority. But he is warning of delays in a vaccine distribution because of the Trump administration's ongoing refusal to begin the transition of power.
Jeff Zeleny reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: President-elect Joe Biden praising medical workers tonight on the front lines of the coronavirus fifth.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES. It's not enough to praise you. We have to protect you. We have to pay you.
ZELENY: He's shining a light on their heroism and calling out President Trump's obstructionism as his administration still refuses to cooperate with Biden's transition team especially on fighting COVID.
BIDEN: We've been unable to get access to the net staffers the kinds of things we need to know about the department of the stockpiles. We know there's not much at all.
And there's a whole lot of things that just -- we just don't have available to us. Look unless it's made available soon, we're going to be behind by weeks and months.
ZELENY: Yet, staffers inside the Department of Health and Human Services were instructed to not communicate with any Biden advisor, CNN has learned. And asked to report any outreach to top agency officials.
ALEX AZAR, U.S. SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: We have made it very clear that when GSA makes a determination, we will ensure complete cooperative professional transitions and planning.
ZELENY: As the U.S. reported the deadliest day of the pandemic in six months, a Minnesota nurse begged Biden for more help.
MARY TURNER, PRESIDENT, NATIONAL NURSES UNITED: I have taken care of coworkers as the fight for their lives on the ventilator and knowing that they got sick because of the hospital or the government hasn't protected them.
ZELENY: Biden showing his empathy said this.
TURNER: I'm sorry. I'm so emotional.
BIDEN: No.
TURNER: It's just --
BIDEN: You got me emotional.
ZELENY: Tonight, members of Biden's COVID-19 advisory board say Biden's team will be ready but said they were skeptical of any credible plan that exists inside the Trump administration.
RICK BRIGHT, MEMBER, BIDEN COVID-19 ADVISORY BOARD: We will be ready on Day One. We've waited 10 months for a plan to be shared with the American public and health care experts on the vaccine program.
ZELENY: The Biden transition team is also placing a higher priority on building the government particularly the Health and Human Services Department.
Officials tell 10, that two Democratic governors are now top contenders for the post. Gina Raimondo of Rhode Island and Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico. They along with Dr. Vivik Murthy, a former surgeon-general, are among the leading contenders for the post.
All this, as Biden's advisers are blasting Trump's attempt to undermine crazy by firing Chris Krebs who was in charge of U.S. election cybersecurity for telling the truth about the election.
CEDRIC RICHMOND, INCOMING SENIOR ADVISOR TO PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN: It's dangerous. The entire transition, Trump's whole behavior right now should frighten the American public.
ZELENY: We are also learning that a handful of current and former Trump administration officials are reaching out privately to the Biden transition team, "believe it's important to put country over party.
They're reaching out to them directly one-on-one trying to help with this transition even as President Trump refuses to acknowledge the outcome of the election.
Now, Mr. Biden clearly is sounding the alarm as more than a quarter of a million Americans have now die of COVID.
Jeff Zeleny, CNN -- Wilmington Delaware.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Mary Turner joins us now from Minneapolis. She is the registered nurse we just heard from in that report from Jeff Zeleny.
So Nurse Turner, good to see you. Thank you for being with us.
TURNER: Thank you for having me.
VAUSE: Just to pick up on some of the points, some of the issues you raised with the president-elect, there seems to be a perception in this country that there are no longer shortages of PPE. The problem is solved. But one health care workers have there are shortage in said that the shirt those shortages never really went away. Is that your experience as well.
TURNER: That is correct.
Ok. First of all, the N-95 that we all cherish and love and absolutely need -- those are supposed to be at one time use.
At my level one trauma hospital, where I have been using those N-95 since the end of February. I have been on the front lines since the end of February, we are fortunate to be down where we only wear them two shifts. When we started we were given a N-95 and we were told we need to wear that until it falls off our face. And we were told to wear it 10 shifts, and then 5. And a lot of our hospitals around the nation and certainly in Minnesota are still having nurses wear them five to ten 10 shifts. And they're supposed to be oberjahmhey are supposed to be a one time use.
VAUSE: You know nurses and doctors are feeling as they deal with this pandemic. It just makes a bad situation a whole lot worse.
[01:35:10]
TURNER: Right. And so you know, the thing is when it first started back in the end of February, like here in Minnesota, and much, different areas around the country, the COVID hadn't arrived yet. Like we had all of northern Minnesota that didn't have the COVID.
And so it was easier to manage what people could bet> PPE/" . the have million Not-05
But you remember the supply lines were horrible. And it was, you know, the governor would promise us we have a million N-95s coming into the state. And then they would be sidetracked and taken off to someplace else.
And so it was very precarious. It was very alarming, because we knew that we weren't being protected. That was putting ourselves and our families at risk.
VAUSE: You know, this country is breaking records every day in terms of spread, hospital admissions and the number of people who are dying. It's about to get a whole lot worse.
Yet the governor of South Dakota where the virus is spreading out of control, is one of those leaders refusing to issue a mask mandate, again repeating on Wednesday stuff that she said in tweets like this from last month. "If folks want to wear a mask, they are free to do. Those who don't want to wear a mask shouldn't be shamed into it and government should not mandate it. We need to respect each other's decision. In South Dakota we know a little common courtesy can go a long way."
What is your reaction to that sort of staff?
TURNER: She can have that attitude, but she needs to, you know, wake up and look around and see what's actually happening. This is out of control. And for her to turn a blind eye to what we need to do is very discouraging.
VAUSE: Finally, Joe Biden and Donald Trump could not be more different in terms of politics but also in character. When Donald Trump met with nurses in the Oval Office on National Nurses Day last he spoke over one nurse who was asked about a shortage of PPE.
This is what happened.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The PPE has been sporadic but it has been manageable and we do what we have to do. We're nurses and we learn to adapt and do whatever is the best thing that we can do for patients to get the job done and get the care provided.
That's what we're going to continue to do as COVID-19 continues.
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Sporadic for you, but not sporadic spread it for a lot of other people.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh no, I agree Mr. President.
TRUMP: Because I've heard the opposite. I have heard that they are loaded up with gowns now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: It was notable because of the disagreement between the nurse and the president. She tried to sort of cover it up I guess in a way. But what did it mean to you to have to his personal change with Joe Biden, and know that at the very least has he some empathy for what's going on?
TURNER: For the first time I had hope. And I felt like I was finally speaking to someone who could really do something to help us get out of this situation that we are in.
And I just became so emotional because it was such a sense of release to know that I was finally being listened to. Because I have been pounding the media pavement here in Minnesota for the last nine months, feeling like I wasn't being heard.
And for today, I finally felt like I was being heard and it was wonderful.
VAUSE: Ok.
Marie Turner, we will leave it there. Thank you for being with us and thank you for everything you do and the best of luck for the coming weeks.
TURNER: You're welcome, thank you.
VAUSE: Never before has a vaccine being developed in as quickly as the candidates from Pfizer and Moderna.
Just weeks ago it wasn't known if a safe and effective vaccine which was even possible. But that might just be the easy part compared to what it would take to distribute the vaccine around the world.
Operation Warp Speed has been tasked by the White House to get the vaccine into needles and then into bodies and the head of that operation spoke with CNN's Richard Quest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DR. MONICEF SLAOUI, CHIEF ADVISER, OPERATION WARP SPEED: We have, other companies have invested into thousands of minus 80-degree refrigerator for one of them, minus 20 degrees huge rooms for others.
We have selected warehouses that are bigger than two or three football fields, again with a refrigeration with automation able to dispatch and distribute millions of doses on a weekly basis. The transportation is secured even in between the companies and the warehouses.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You're manufacturing them in large numbers. Getting them so that you're administering them. There are some who are saying that the emergency use authorization, you should have had longer (INAUDIBLE).
Tell me why you believe EUA on two months of data is justified
[01:39:51]
SLAOUI: Yes, so I think first of all, you need to know that the FDA has done an analysis. It has shown that more than 95 percent of all adverse events associated with vaccines happen within the first 40 days after completing immunization
So on that basis, the FDA says said we need a minimum of 60-days a little bit more than 40. Because the overwhelming majority of potential adverse events have been documented.
Here's what we know.
What we know is that 1,000 to 2,000 people die every day. 180,000 people, 460,000 are infected every day. If a vaccine is 95 percent effective, there is no way on earth in my view from ethical perspective we should wait four more months to allow for 120,000 people to die, if you have a thousand people dying per day, you know, if it's to exclude a conceptual risk of maybe one person in 100,000 or in 50,000 having an adverse event --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Vaccine access will face some unique challenges in places like the Middle East, Africa, and South America. Emirates Airlines is among who draw (INAUDIBLE) with distribution already dealing with Pfizer on this.
CNN's John Defterios spoke with the head of airline. John is with us now live from Abu Dhabi.
So exactly what are Emirates doing that, I guess the other aren't?
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Well, you have to get clearance John to get your vaccine hub distribution up and running and get it to the cold storage level that of course are the world standards.
This is interesting because Dubai is so dependent on trade, tourism, and travel that it's eager to get a vaccine out. In a sense it serves the public that's also their future at the same time. They serve what -- 2.5 billion people within about a 3.5-hour flight to South Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
But I spoke to Tim Clark at Dubai International. They're planning to use Dubai World Central which is the new airport that's been underutilized over the last two years during the downturn.
Here he is, Sir Tim.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIR TIM CLARK, PRESIDENT, EMIRATE: We saw an opportunity to create a hub both in this airport and the Dubai World Central and that's what we did.
So fortunately, we are now in a position that with our fleet of aircraft including all the freighters, that we can we can now create a hub for all these vaccines and then distribute them to Africa, South America, West Asia, India, Pakistan, and further east.
DEFTERIOS: So this is global logistics on a scale you've probably never seen before. Are you well positioned as a carrier and as a hub in Dubai to deliver on that?
CLARK: I think we're better positioned as a carrier. I think we're better positioned as a hub to deal with the scale of things. A lot of other airports and countries and airlines can deal with the more smaller scale. And no doubt they will.
But in terms of a logistical center of distribution, under the conditions that these vaccines have to be stored and, of course, distributed, I'm not sure that there are many that really equalize in this part of the world.
Certainly sitting as you rightly say between the east and the west major population centers.
DEFTERIOS: Do you think that the vaccine that we're seeing coming out of the west with Moderna and Pfizer can prove to be the silver bullets because the expectations are so high and the test results are so solid?
CLARK: I can see no other way out of this pandemic, and they have to be the silver bullet. We've got track and trace. We've got lock downs, we've got all sort of practical social distancing, et cetera, et cetera.
But still in the west -- in America, in Europe -- it is rampant. Even under nine months of all sorts of practical to try and mitigate risk of infection.
DEFTERIOS: So let's talk it though, what's realistic in terms of global distribution? You have the hub here, set and ready to go. Are we looking at the second half of 2021 or the second quarter of 2021 on the global scale? CLARK: No, I think if they do come out and we have got the logistics
of the supply chain sorted. Of course in Europe and America, they can be road transport. They can be integrated. So FedEx, UPS, (INAUDIBLE) and all that.
But once you are talking about this trans-oceanic and content from the actual production source of the pharmaceutical side of things. You need to get all of the sorted out. And it's that in tandem with the scaling up of production. In tandem with the scaling up of the supply chain. Whether it be grounded air will take time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:44:39]
DEFTERIOS: He's saying six to nine months but John, he also believed they can back to profitability in 2022. He was very bearish back in February and May but if you think about the last six months. They were one of the first to reopen back in May. They've set up an air corridor in the last two weeks so with Heathrow Airport to establish protocols.
[01:45:01]
DEFTERIOS: They think they can add to that, folks at Emirates tell me and now they're going after the distribution of business with the cold storage out of Dubai World Central.
So a lot to push out to try to get back to normal with a vaccine.
VAUSE: Yes.
There is another aviation story out there right now. It involves the Boeing 737 Max. It's been grounded for 20 months after two fatal crashes.
Now the FAA has sort of cleared the way so it can start flying passengers again. There aren't any passenger out there at the moment. So what's the process here to get the airliner back in the air?
DEFTERIOS: Well, you make a good point because there's not a lot of demand for the 737 Max although it's much more fuel efficient. This won't happen overnight, as you suggest, it's the regulator in the United States: which is the FAA that covers 72 planes in the United States with American Airlines, United Airlines and South West.
So they have to upgrade the software, retrain the pilots, and gets the planes ready. Those are the kind of key factors at play.
But the third factor is the unknown, John. Can you restore confidence after the two fatal crashes with Ethiopian airlines and the Ryan Air or (INAUDIBLE) go away after the confidence from the FAA and then the other regulators to roll it out over time.
That's a huge question mark, and we don't really know the demand yet because the industry is so decimated, down 75 percent for example, Emirates, in terms of revenues in the last six months. VAUSE: Yes. John, thank you.
VAUSE: Now, just ahead, the giant fish which is at risk in the Amazon and the biologist, raising the statement.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Call to Earth is a call to action for the environment to share solutions to critical issues like global warming, deforestation and plastic waste.
This week it's all about the food we eat and the people working to protect our threatened fish stocks around the world.
Today we travel deep into the Amazon to meet a biologist racing to save one very special species. Here is CNN's Richard Quest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Sneaking through the waters of the Amazon, a river giant. Creatures three meters in size, weighing up to 200 kilograms.
The Arapaima is one of the world's largest freshwater fish. And for generations, it has been a major source of food in these parts.
However, as populations have grown and modernized the species has fallen victim to overfishing, becoming nearly extinct in certain areas.
[01:50:00]
QUEST: Arapaima fishing is now illegal in Brazil, unless it's done sustainably as part of community-based conservation programs.
Joao Campos-Silva (ph), along with NGOs and partner organizations help put those programs in place. The fisheries biologist has been working for more than a decade to help protect the fish.
For him it boils down to empowering the local communities and leaders to take action. For example, guarding protected areas from illegal fishers, closing river connected likes to fishing and hunting, and introducing the careful management of fishing.
JOAO CAMPOS-SILVA, FISHERIES BIOLOGIST: This is very interesting because actually this model is quite simple. Very simple, actually. For a long time people were excluded from the conversation prospective, but actually they play a very important role to sustain and to maintain the forest.
We are talking about a paradigm shift, conservation should mean a better life for local.
QUEST: In the last 10 years, he says this has all helped the Arapaima numbers rise fourfold, while protecting other wildlife in the Amazon.
QUEST: Are we talking about a success? SILVA: In this case, conservation started to make sense. Now local
people say we need to protect the environment, we need to protect nature because more biodiversity means a better life.
QUEST: Campos-Silva says benefits go beyond lonely conservation. Increased income from sustainable fishing is invested into infrastructure and health care. Women are also able to earn incomes through bigger roles in arapaima management.
SILVA: So, this is truly fish of change that have been promoting our social transformation in the Amazonia.
QUEST: The arapaima saved from extinction, and in turn protecting livelihoods and communities across the Amazon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Kazakhstan's (INAUDIBLE) Lake is being taken over by a kids item for the 1950s but the real thing, not the plastic version. These bright pink flamingoes stopped by during their seasonal migration, and were recorded on a camera by local nature lover.
Officials from the nature reserve says they will fly onwards to Iran and then southern Kazakhstan, when the weather gets a little cooler.
Apparently, there's a right way and a wrong way to butter toast. British TV chef Nigella Lawson made it her duty to tell the world, but some tabloids are now are saying, she's toast. Here's Jeanne Moos.
[01:55:01]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: If you think buttering toast doesn't require a recipe, check out TV chef Nigella Lawson teaching how to butter toast.
NIGELLA LAWSON, TV CHEF: I favor the two stage buttering approach.
MOOS: Double buttered toast. Started popping up like pop tarts, stage one?
LAWSON: The minute this came out of the toaster, it's still lovely, I spread it, the butter and it will give a fabulous, comfort bite.
MOOS: Inspiring tweets with bite, shook to core that Nigella invented buttered toast.
Stage 2 after the toast is cooled, pile on more butter.
LAWSON: In some golden patches on the surface.
MOOS: Causing comments to surface like thoughts go out to all the single buttered pieces of toast that are consumed and I've been doing my toast all wrong for 40 years.
But there's more. Nigella prefers using unsalted butter. So at the end --
LAWSON: But I need to do, is sprinkles some sea salt flakes over --
MOOS: Her show is called "Cook, Eat, Repeat", and boy, did the toast test segment get repeatedly toasted. OMG she can even complicate toast.
Some tried double buttered toast and found it really just taste like toast with twice as much butter on it, but others buttered up Nigella, declaring "it's a game-changer". And these grain hound showed he doesn't show which side his bread is buttered on as long as it's buttered twice.
(on camera) Nigella got burned by the British tabloids.
The "Sun Times" butterly ridiculous. Next week, how to suck eggs.
One Twitter user wrote Nigella might as well eat the bar of butter if she's putting that much on her toast. My mom. It may or may not be the best thing since sliced bread, but Nigella seems smitten with.
LAWSON: This is the platonic ideal of toast.
MOOS: We will never know whether plateau buttered his toast, but with all this attention, you better believe usually humble toast is patting itself on the path.
Jeanne Moos, CNN --
LAWSON: -- fabulous, comfort bite.
MOOS: New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: a comfort bite.
I'm John Vause. Please stay with us.
CNN NEWSROOM continues at the top of the hour with my friend and colleague Rosemary Church. Thanks for watching.
[01:57:35]
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