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Rolling out the Vaccine; Biden Lays out Pandemic Plan; Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) is Interviewed about Stimulus; Protests in Boise over COVID; YouTube Removes Content; Boeing 737 Max Returns to Skies. Aired 9:30-10a

Aired December 09, 2020 - 09:30   ET

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

[09:30:00]

ALEX AZAR, HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: Matter of days then FDA approves the vaccine. We would then authorize shipment within 24 hours.

Twenty million people should get vaccinated in just the next several weeks. And then we'll just keep rolling out vaccines through January, February, March, as they come off the production lines.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: Hopeful words there. So good to hear Secretary Azar saying 20 million people could be vaccinated by the end of this month in the coming weeks. What's the plan?

POPPY HARLOW, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. Sara Murray is on it. This is the really hard part is distributing it. Are the states ready?

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is the really hard part. And, you know, when we talk to states, they basically say, we are as ready as we can be with the caveat that we don't know exactly how many doses we're going to get, we don't know exactly what day they're going to be showing up. And, of course, like everything with this pandemic, they may have to tweak the plans as this gets underway.

But let -- let's look at what's coming, you know. December 10th, that's -- this is the big day, the FDA advisory committee meets. They're going to look at this Pfizer vaccine. And then after that meeting we're really expecting within the next few days the sort of December 11th to 14th period, that's an estimate, that we could hear from the FDA authorizing this Emergency Use Authorization for the Pfizer vaccine.

And from there you heard Alex Azar saying, within 24 hours this could ship. So by December 15th, you know, we could have the first vaccines going out to states.

Again, this is an estimate, but it means that there is a ray of hope. This is coming down the pipeline. But, even from there, we need to just remember, this is going to be really limited. The supply is going to be really limited for quite some time. And if you look at the state plans, they are starting to reflect that in their planning and also in their messaging to their constituents. You know, in Illinois, for example, they're saying, look, even for the priority groups it could take a couple of months to roll out this vaccine.

And this is what we're hearing from state officials. You know, they don't expect, in their first batches of this vaccine, even to be able to inoculate all of their health care workers or all of their long term care facility residents. And those are the people who are at the front of the line.

From there, this is going to get a whole lot more complicated because then you move into who is an essential worker and are you going to have enough vaccines in order to be able to cover all of those essential workers? And states are saying that's really hard to plan for because even though they may have a ballpark idea of how many doses they're getting in December, they really don't know what's going to happen starting in January.

HARLOW: They're going to be working around the clock, that's for sure.

Sara, thanks very much for the update.

MURRAY: Sure.

SCIUTTO: Well, President-elect Joe Biden, he has unveiled a three- point plan to combat the growing coronavirus pandemic in his first 100 days in office. An approach that continues really to sharply contrast with President Trump's response and often particularly lately nonresponse to the pandemic.

HARLOW: Jessica Dean is with us this morning.

Good morning, Jess.

Biden is pledging to put a national mask mandate-ish in place. I know there's questions about whether you can really mandate it, but a big request for people to wear them for the first 100 days.

What else is he proposing?

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right. So he talked a lot about this yesterday when he unveiled key members of his health team. And it really comes down to three things, masks, vaccines and schools.

So let me walk you through all of those.

You mentioned the mask mandate-ish. He is calling on all Americans to wear masks for the first 100 days of his administration. He plans on putting an executive order in place, but that's only going to extend to places where he has jurisdiction. So places like federal buildings, interstate travel, on trains and airplanes, things like that. Otherwise, he's really relying on local officials, state officials, local governments to get on board and ask people and mandate people mask up all across the country. And we know that he's been working with them to get them on board all across the U.S.

Then we have the vaccine. He pledged 100 million vaccines in 100 days. And that's a tall order. He admitted as much. He also called on Congress to pass funding to make sure that they can get this vaccine distribution plan going and that it doesn't stall out once it starts going. And he also called on the Trump administration to get those extra doses from Pfizer and Moderna.

And then, finally, and this is so key for so many families out there -- schools. He wants as many schools open as possible in the first 100 days. They're going to be doing as much as they can -- again, that comes back to congressional funding -- as safely as they can, but he wants as many kids in school as possible.

Jim and Poppy.

SCIUTTO: Jessica Dean, thanks very much. Ambitious plans, no question.

Well, millions of Americans, they are counting on a stimulus deal to help blunt the economic effects of this pandemic. Will Congress finally deliver? Well, have an update.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:38:54]

SCIUTTO: Well, there are lots of stimulus proposals on the table now, but sadly nothing close to the finish line. Sources say a group of bipartisan senators are expected to share more details of their plan this morning. Meanwhile, a White House plan muddying the waters somewhat here.

Joining me now is California Congressman Eric Swalwell. He serves on both the Intel and Judiciary Committees.

Congressman, thanks so much for taking the time this morning.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D-CA): Good morning, Jim.

SCIUTTO: So you're aware of this White House plan, $916 billion. It does have some relief to state and local governments and liability protections. Those have been two of the key sticking points here. But it does not have a revival of the $300 weekly unemployment benefit.

Is the White House proposal dead on arrival from Democrats' perspective?

SWALWELL: Well, I like that we're negotiating, Jim. I think it's really important that we are. And I want to do everything we can to get money in people's pockets. So I'm not saying no, you know, to anything other than that we're at the table. We think that there also needs to be direct support payments to families, that we need to continue to invest in the testing, treating, vaccinating, as well, as you mentioned, the state and located governments.

[09:40:01] Look, these are cops and firefighters who are going to lose their jobs if they do not get the relief.

So, let's get a deal done now and then when the Biden administration comes in, let's go, as the Fed chair has called us to do, even bigger.

SCIUTTO: Has there been any progress on these key sticking points, aid to states and liability protections?

SWALWELL: I know Speaker Pelosi and Speaker McConnell continue to talk and Speaker Pelosi has said that she would take a shorter term deal. But, you know, Jim, I want to get -- I want to get money in the pockets of the American people as soon as possible. I keep my DM's open on Twitter and I've been posting some of the DMs that people have been sending me about being unemployed and not being able to make rent or being in the food lines. It's just crushing. And it's a call for us to act.

SCIUTTO: Do Congress -- do members of Congress need to make a deal before they go home for the holidays?

SWALWELL: I -- yes. Yes. I don't want to go home, look at anyone in the eye without us at least doing something.

Also, restaurants, by the way, you know, most restaurants, they make most of what they bring in, in a year comes during the last 30 days of the year for holiday parties. And most places can't do that. They -- they need help immediately.

SCIUTTO: Yes. We've had some restaurant owners on this broadcast. They are asking the same thing.

You're aware of something "Axios" first reported, an investigation going back between 2011-2015, that you were among the targets of a woman who was in effect a Chinese spy, right, trying to establish contacts with U.S. politicians, rising politicians.

Did you have -- and I should note to people that you cooperated in this investigation and were given a briefing by the FBI.

Did you have any concerns about this person before you had what's known as a defensive briefing from the FBI to make you aware of this threat?

SWALWELL: No. Jim, I was shocked. I mean, you know, just over six years ago I was told about this individual and then I offered to help. And I did help. And I was thanked by the FBI for my help. And that person is no longer in the country. And I was a little surprised to read about my cooperation in that story because the story says that, you know, there was no -- there was never a suspicion of wrongdoing on my part and all I did was cooperate. And the FBI said that yesterday.

But the wrongdoing here, Jim, is that, at the same time this story was being leaked out, is the time that I was working on impeachment on the House Intelligence and Judiciary Committees. And if this is a country where people who criticize the president are going to have law enforcement information weaponized against them, that's not a country that any of us want to live in. And I hope it is investigated as to who leaked this information.

SCIUTTO: These operations are designed to build relationships but also possibly to get sensitive information. Are you concerned that you shared any information with this person before you were notified by the FBI?

SWALWELL: Well, I know that I didn't. Again, I can't talk too much about the details of the case. Even though others may have violated their oath, I'm not going to violate mine.

But the "Axios" story made it absolutely clear that no information was ever shared. Except, Jim, the people who did share classified information were the people who leaked this story. And to do that against a critic of the president, they may think that they're going to silence me. They're not going to silence me. But what they are going to do is they're going to make others think twice when they're asked to sit down and provide defensive information about people like this.

I hope none of my colleagues ever find themselves in the position that I found myself in -- that I found myself in by having to sit down with the FBI because someone who had helped the campaign was trying to do this. But I hope every person would want to help their country, just as I did.

SCIUTTO: Final question. This is a textbook Chinese influence operation. They happen frequently inside the country and outside of the country.

What does this tell us about the degree of the threat from China today?

SWALWELL: They're persistent. They are -- they are doing this all over the country at all levels of government. And I'm grateful that our FBI, back in 2015, reached out to me. They showed great professionalism in seeking to alert me.

In our congressional offices, Jim, we don't have the technical capabilities, you know, to run background checks on people who are around us. And my district has a third Asian descent, of people of Asian descent. And so, you know, you don't also want to stereotype people as spies. And so I think this means we need to invest more in our intelligence resources so that we don't have people who can successfully do this. Thankfully, in this case, because of the FBI, nothing happened.

SCIUTTO: Let's talk about COVID for a moment. At least 33 million Californians, of course, your home state, are currently under stay-at- home orders for the next three weeks or so.

President-elect Biden, in his plan when he takes office, did not talk about national -- in fact, has never expressed support for a national stay-at-home order. But do you believe that the president-elect, when he takes office, should take similar steps nationally or to the worst hit areas, right, to ask the worst hit regions or states or cities to impose such orders to get on the other side of this worsening outbreak?

[09:45:06]

SWALWELL: I think he should work with the leaders where it's needed, Jim, and to avoid, you know, sweeping solutions. But leadership at the top will be new. We haven't seen that in the past because this president has mocked the virus, he's downplayed the virus, he's called it a hoax, he's suggested therapies that have proven not to work. So having leadership is important.

And the most important thing we can do is to close the delta between actually having a vaccine and having a country vaccinated. And I think Vice President Biden should -- President-elect Biden, when as president should call on all of us, whether you invented the vaccine or manufactured the vaccine or are a neighbor who's trying to get your neighbor vaccinated, that we all can play a role to crush this virus and reopen the country.

SCIUTTO: Congressman Eric Swalwell, thanks so much for joining the program this morning.

SWALWELL: My pleasure.

Thanks, Jim.

HARLOW: Ahead, a board meeting on potentially implementing a mask mandate in Idaho is abruptly halted because of intense protests outside of the health department building and outside some health officials' homes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:50:36]

SCIUTTO: Well, protests forced Idaho health officials to halt their weekly board meeting last night. Why? Because dozens of anti-mask and now anti-vax demonstrators gathered outside the central district health headquarters in Boise. Some even rallied outside board member's homes. The Ada (ph) Country commissioner says some protesters were banging on the door while her 12-year-old son was home alone. Imagine that.

HARLOW: I can't. That is unacceptable.

Donie O'Sullivan is with us now.

We're seeing the danger of disinformation across social media play out in real time here.

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: Yes, that's right. I mean this is primetime for anti-vaccine conspiracy theorists. And I think the real worrying thing here, Poppy and Jim, is that, you know, when people are searching for information about these new vaccines, people who might have some genuine questions, genuine concerns, there's a real risk that they get pulled down these really dark rabbit holes on social media that are just full of misinformation.

And to give you an example of the depravity of what's out there, I want to show you this statement from FaceBook about what they're going to do about these false claims. They said, false claims about the safety and ingredients or side effects of the vaccines, for example, we will remove false claims that COVID-19 vaccines contain microchips or anything else that isn't on the official vaccine ingredient list.

I mean that does sound ridiculous that there's a microchip in this -- in these vaccines. Of course that is false. But that is the sort of level of misinformation that is going viral out there right now.

Jim. Poppy.

SCIUTTO: OK, so another step, because so much of this false information, let's call it what it is, is shared on the Internet, including platforms such as YouTube. YouTube announcing a new hopefully substantial step. Tell us what it is and what it means.

O'SULLIVAN: Yes, that's right. Just actually in the past few minutes, since election results, YouTube says have been officially certified by states, YouTube is now going to start removing, here's their statement, any piece of content uploaded today that misleads people by alleging that widespread fraud or errors challenged the outcome of the 2020 U.S. presidential election. So as well as tackling, of course, vaccine misinformation, they're also trying to tackle election misinformation.

Now, we've seen pledges like this from these social media companies in the past. YouTube is particularly bad at taking down content they say they're going to take down. But they say from today they will start removing new videos that claim that fraud changed the outcome of the election. That could create problems for President Trump's own YouTube channel, also for fringe networks like OANN that are always pushing these conspiracy theories.

But one thing that's very important to remember in this YouTube announcement, is they're saying they're only going to remove the videos that are posted from today, for after. So there's nothing to stop all the hundreds and thousands of videos out there with false claims for Trump to grab them and tweet them any time he wants.

HARLOW: Yes.

SCIUTTO: I mean that's been a consistent thing here, right, is it's hard to keep up with all of this, you know, and you've \seen this with Twitter, FaceBook and YouTube.

HARLOW: Well, good for them for doing it, Donie, I think, and maybe -- maybe the policy will change more when they see the problem from the past videos, as you mentioned.

Thank you for the reporting.

O'SULLIVAN: Thank you. SCIUTTO: Will paying passengers once again take to the skies on 737 Max jets? It comes less than two years after fatal crashes that killed hundreds. Is it safe? Are all the problems fixed?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:58:22]

HARLOW: Boeing's now infamous 737 Max jet returns to the skies with passengers today. It is the first time since the plane's grounding 21 months ago following those two fatal crashes.

SCIUTTO: Where Brazil's Gol Airlines was the first carrier in the world to resume regular commercial flights.

CNN business editor John Defterios joins us now from Abu Dhabi.

I mean the key question, John, is, you know, have the safety issues been addressed here?

JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Yes, that's the hope for -- in terms of rebuilding trust, Jim, particularly for Boeing, because this cost them some $20 billion. It was that safety feature that was before the software allowing the plane to rise or fall too quickly. They say they have corrected it.

I thought it was a bit unusual, though, that it was a Brazilian carrier that took the lead considering it was the FAA three weeks ago that cleared this ability for the 737 to take to the skies again. The first commercial flight landing in Porto Alegre today from the financial capital of Sao Paolo.

And I think also the American carriers are taking a more measured response to getting this plane back in the air. American Airlines will start on December 29th on flights from Miami to LaGuardia. Then United Airlines will go into February 11th with 11 flights and Alaska Air will follow a few weeks later. So you can see they're not willing to take the lead.

And also I think Southwest, for example, is taking more plane orders, but it has not announced its spring schedule. We just know it's spring 2021. And the overall narrative, Jim, to your point about confidence of this carrier and the airlines that are going to be buying them here going forward is that we've had about 500 cancellations of the 737 Max.

[10:00:06]

It's been terrible for Boeing overall.