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White House Staffers To Receive COVID Vaccine Ahead Of General Public; UPS, FedEx Distributing COVID Vaccine To Hundreds Of Sites; U.S. Commerce Department Confirms It Is Victim Of Data Breach; California Marks Third Straight Day Of Over 30K New Positive COVID-19 Cases; Interview With Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN). Aired 7-8p ET

Aired December 13, 2020 - 19:00   ET

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

[19:00:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

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ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: This is going to be such a great show tonight. You don't want to miss it. Gather the fam, grab your tissues. Get ready to be inspired feel good tonight.

"CNN HEROES, AN ALL-STAR TRIBUTE" airs at 8:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

CABRERA: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York.

At this moment, freight trucks and airplanes are carrying the first batch of a coronavirus vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech and they're on their way to hundreds of facilities across all 50 states. The CDC director has given the OK and the first vaccine injections could begin as soon as tomorrow morning offering much needed protection for the country's most vulnerable and those health care workers on the front lines. But one more group has now been added to this list.

Tonight, CNN is learning that high-ranking White House staffers will also be among the first Americans to get vaccinated against the virus.

Let's get right to the White House and CNN's Boris Sanchez.

What more can you tell us about this?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Ana, this could happen as early as the next few days. White House officials confirming that they have been told that officials who work closely with the president will be among the first Americans to receive doses of the Pfizer coronavirus vaccine.

The goal here is to prevent more government officials from becoming infected with coronavirus. Something that has happened frequently in the past few months dating all the way back to the spring and perhaps culminating in that super spreader Rose Garden event for Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett where it's believed that the president himself caught coronavirus.

Important to put this in context. The idea that this administration, a president that has repeatedly downplayed the severity of this virus, where superiors have told their staffers to not wear masks on the White House grounds because the president doesn't like the optics of it, and further an administration that continues holding holiday- themed parties with hundreds of people in very close quarters, no social distancing, very few if any masks.

These are going to be the folks -- these officials that are going to be among the very first Americans receiving the COVID vaccine at a time when there are millions of high-risk Americans that would badly need it. And it's a scarce vaccine. There are only a very select number of health officials, health experts that are receiving this vaccine at this moment.

There's still one question that's out there that the White House has not given us any indication toward, and that is whether President Trump and Vice President Pence would actually get their doses of the vaccine administered on camera so the American public can see that not only are they being transparent about this, but they're trying to inspire hope in so many that are skeptical right now about this vaccine -- Ana.

CABRERA: All right. Boris Sanchez at the White House for us with the latest. Thank you.

Let's turn now to our chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta.

Sanjay, I just want you to reflect on this and what we have seen over the past year for a moment. First case in the U.S. was confirmed on January 21st. If I told you on that day we would have a vaccine less than 11 months later, what would you have said?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I didn't think it was going to happen. I would have said that that seems very unlikely. But, you know, all along, you know, it's interesting, Ana, I follow this so closely. On March 16th is when they started those clinical trials. So, you know, less than two months after the first patient was diagnosed in the United States. And already that seemed very fast.

And then we started seeing these results come in and when the Data Monitoring Safety Board, actually this independent body, first released the results of the Pfizer-BioNTech trial, when they said it was 90 percent, 95 percent effective, that was -- you know, it was a remarkable moment. I mean, people didn't know if this was going to work, really, Ana. It's a brand-new type of vaccine platform.

So it was remarkable in terms of its speed. It's remarkable because, you know, you're just seeing medical innovation happen before our eyes. It's going to change I think medicine even beyond this pandemic. So it is a remarkable day. It's weird because it comes at a time when we're seeing so much -- so many new cases and so many new hospitalizations and people dying. So it feels like the best of times, the worst of times, the age of wisdom, the age of foolishness, all of this. It's like whiplash, Ana.

CABRERA: It's incredible. And I think it gives some people pause, even people who believe fully in science, who, you know, aren't anti- vaxxers, who believe in vaccines. A new poll finds 61 percent of Americans say they'll choose to get the coronavirus vaccine if it's made available to them. A minority, 32 percent, say they would not. (INAUDIBLE) says that's not enough. Listen.

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DR. MONCEF SLAOUI, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC ADVISER, OPERATION WARP SPEED: So we need to have immunized about 75 percent or 80 percent of the U.S. population before herd immunity can be established.

[19:05:02]

We hope to reach that point between the month of May and the month of June. It is, however, critical that most of the American people decide and accept to take the vaccine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Sanjay, 61 percent isn't 75 percent or 80 percent. If we don't get that number, critical for herd immunity, could we see mass vaccinations but still a population that is vulnerable to the virus?

GUPTA: Yes, I think it would drag out this pandemic. I mean, you know, the thing about, you know, trying to mass vaccinate and create this immunity is that eventually you make it harder for the virus to find a home. You know, the virus goes here, that person has been vaccinated. Goes here, that person has been vaccinated. Eventually, what they call the R-0, this factor of spread starts to go down.

One thing that's worth noting, Ana, and again, just as you look at this over time, you see the number of people who have been documented to be infected, 16 million. Many models suggest the number may be triple that, closer to 50 million people. Here's the point. If you've got 60 percent of the country vaccinated and another, you know, 20 percent had a natural infection and as a result were sort of immune, in an ironic sort of way, that may help. It may help you get to this herd immunity.

That's not the way you don't want to do it. Just to be clear. You don't want to let the infection sort of just run amuck because so many people can get sick. But you are going to have a lot of immunity from the people who got infected. Hopefully the percentage of people who are willing to get vaccinated goes up as they see, as the people who are hesitant right now see other people getting the vaccine and seeing that they're doing OK and recognizing how effective it really is.

CABRERA: We're seeing record numbers of cases, deaths, hospitalizations, the CDC director said this week for the next 60 to 90 days, we're going to have more deaths per day, than we had on 9/11. We heard Bill Gates this morning saying and things are going to get worse in the U.S. in the months ahead before things start to get better even with the vaccine, you know, being implemented and people getting inoculations.

For those who view this vaccine and today as, you know, the silver bullet, what's your message to them?

GUPTA: You know, the message is, you know, a couple of months ago I didn't know where in this entire pandemic we were. I didn't know if we were in the second or third inning or if we were, you know, first inning or closer to the end. Now what I would say is we're getting closer to the end of this. I mean, there is really an end in sight. And I don't think we could have realistically or convincingly said that just a couple of months ago.

So do you want to, you know, hang on for a couple more innings, get through this, keep yourself and your loved ones safe, because you see that end in sight, double down on your efforts? Or do you say, hey, look, I'll take my chances now? You'd hate to be in this position where you're so close to the end and yet people around you, yourself included, get sick, require hospitalization and maybe even sadly die.

So, you know, Ana, I don't know the answer to this anymore. I would have thought that with 200 -- almost 300,000 people dying, that the message would be loud and clear, that you could do so much in terms of saving lives with such simple measures, wearing a mask. I'm reminded over and over again that as amazing as the science is -- and it really is -- that science can't rescue us from ourselves. It can't rescue us if we don't lean into the basic public health behaviors.

So I hope it's a message that gets through. I think there's a lot of people who are doing a great job, but we need, you know, that mask adherence to go up. It can make a huge difference.

CABRERA: As you point out, so many people won't even wear a mask and already a lot of Americans are skeptical of vaccines. This is a vaccine that was developed in a matter of months. How do you persuade them that this vaccine is safe?

GUPTA: Well, you know, I think part of it is not just the what, but the how, really explaining how this vaccine was made. That the science around this started a long time ago. It wasn't just since this pandemic that the basic platform, scientific platform, started, you know, 15, 16 years ago. But also that it's gone through the same safety trials and efficacy trials that we see for other vaccines.

You know, I do think, you know, when I go back and look at -- in our reporting, look even at previous pandemic like h1n1, what ultimately convinced people to trust a possible vaccine at that time. What they found, it was their own doctors, their own healthcare providers actually talking to them about it. So I do think that, you know, one of the first groups that really has to totally believe in this is the healthcare providers themselves which most do.

But then for them to actually act as ambassadors because that is who American people trust more than anyone else is their own healthcare providers. I also think we need to be seeing, you know, people who are essential workers, people who are the most vulnerable to this illness getting vaccinated and doing well. We should show those stories and I think it will be really important as more and more of those stories are seen, again the people who are hesitant right now at home feel for convinced to go ahead and do it.

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CABRERA: As we discuss this education component, and, you know, trying to make sure the most trusted voices are connecting with those who are fearful or skeptical, I want you to hear what Dr. Francis Collins, the director of the National Institutes of Health, had to say today when he was asked about what it will take to overcome people's hesitancy on this vaccine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: For somebody like me to say you should be signing up for this vaccine, OK, a white guy who works for the government, sure, that isn't necessarily going to be the voice that people need to hear if they're skeptical.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: I think you already addressed, you know, who those most effective voices may be. But is there ever going to be a point, do you think, where states should consider making vaccinations mandatory?

GUPTA: You know, I don't think so. You know, it may be a situation where people opt out -- have to opt out so its presumed that people will take the vaccine in certain situations like schools, for example. But, you know, I think that -- I do think that the educational programs and the increasing sort of evidence behind this vaccine will help.

It's interesting to hear Dr. Collins say that. And I do think that in addition to people like him, having black health care workers who have looked at the evidence or taken care of patients, have been on the frontlines also getting the vaccine will help. I mean, I looked at the data. You know, I mean, why do I believe in this? I looked at the data. This isn't just (INAUDIBLE), this isn't a reflexive yes, just give me the vaccine.

And a lot of people have. So I think, you know, people who have been able to examine the data, also taking care of patients, if they're the ones who are rolling up their sleeves and other people see that, I think it will make a difference.

I told you yesterday, Ana, that I would recommend this for my own parents. And I get so many notes about that afterwards because ultimately, it's like, would you do this to your own family? It's a question I often get and the answer is yes.

CABRERA: And that speaks to your confidence in this and so many people think of you as their trusted source, as we discussed yesterday. I'm so glad you added that at the end. I was going to add it so people knew where you stood. Thank you, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, as always.

GUPTA: You got it, Ana. Thank you.

CABRERA: This hour, there is a massive logistical effort under way to get millions of doses of the coronavirus vaccine to hospitals around the country. We're going to talk to the person who is leading the effort at UPS to distribute the vaccine to hundreds of sites. That's next.

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[19:16:28]

CABRERA: This just in, the U.S. has hit another record for hospitalizations in the country due to the coronavirus. It is now the 12th consecutive day that hospitalizations have been above 100,000. Over 109,000 today to be exact.

This comes on a historic day as the first coronavirus vaccine doses left the Pfizer facility and CNN's Dianne Gallagher is at the Gerald R. Ford International Airport in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and, Dianne, you were there as the plane took flight with those first doses of the vaccine.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ana, it was really just watching a cargo flight up in the air. But it was so much more than that. Just the complex logistics that have gone and happened here throughout the state of Michigan and now nationwide really are a testament to the collaborative effort. That Pfizer vaccine which was manufactured about 45 minutes down the road from here, set out in those UPS and FedEx trucks to respective airports.

Here, they loaded it up on to that cargo plane and flew to Memphis, their headquarters, where they're sort of divvying up those vaccines to send out to the rest of the country. Now UPS is handling the eastern side of the country, FedEx is handling the western side of the country. And it is all about that chain of control. They're using technology to make sure that they have not just every minute an update, but every two seconds.

FedEx says it is receiving transmissions about the location of these vaccine packages. It's also receiving real time information on the temperatures. Remember, this has got to be about negative 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

All that dry ice packed around those vaccines making this of course precious cargo in more ways than one. We talked to people here who were very emotional, airport workers, a couple that showed up because they wanted to see this happen. They called it history.

Now both of these companies are going to be using air and ground transport to get the vaccines out to all 50 states for the next day or two, and we're expecting another shipment to go out, a larger shipment even, Ana, on Monday.

CABRERA: Dianne Gallagher, thank you. And you just heard Dianne there say FedEx will handle vaccine

distribution in the western part of the country. UPS will focus primarily on the eastern areas. That's what we've been told.

With us now is the president of UPS Healthcare, Wes Wheeler.

Wes, welcome to the show. Thanks for taking the time. This is happening. The trucks are moving. The planes are flying. This is an enormous operation under way tonight. How has it been going so far today?

WES WHEELER, PRESIDENT, UPS HEALTHCARE: It's going great. Actually, I think all of our flights now are wheels up out of Louisville, Kentucky. That's our world port facility here in Louisville. That's where I am. I'm in the operation center for the flight operations. Our command center is not more than a few hundred yards from here where we have full time people watching every single shipment.

As you said earlier, we're tracking every package minute by minute. We have our own technology watching each package on our own. So every time that package arrives at one of our sites anywhere in the country, we can see it within 10 feet.

CABRERA: Have there been any hiccups?

WHEELER: None at all. In fact, we have a couple of very important shipments going outside of the continental U.S. that left today also and they're on their way out to some of the islands.

CABRERA: Well, I want to show you and our viewers, a moment here was the first UPS flight carrying the vaccine to arrive in Louisville, Kentucky, earlier today.

[19:20:07]

And all over social media people in cities where UPS planes are landing, they are celebrating, Wes, saying the vaccine is here. People really have been emotional watching your planes take off. We caught up with some folks in Michigan who drove down to the airport just to be part of this moment. Listen.

BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICKY ROYCE, MICHIGAN RESIDENT: Oh, my gosh. This is like man on the moon time.

RON ROYCE, MICHIGAN RESIDENT: Yes.

V. ROYCE: This is like where were you when?

R. ROYCE: We're just so excited. I mean, we watched on the news, and we jumped in the car and said we're going to get down there right now. It's really cool.

V. ROYCE: It's call coming from west Michigan. Whoo-hoo.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

CABRERA: This is like man on the moon time, she said. What does this day feel like to you? You're part of making this historic moment possible.

WHEELER: Well, thank you. It's really the thousands of UPSers behind me. We've been working on this for months. We have daily calls of Operation Warp Speed. I was on a call about 10 minutes ago with General Perna's team. We're working here as a team, all of us. Competitors alike. And we really feel like this is a big, big day for the country, a big day for the world. We're shipping now outside of the U.S. Also into Canada and other countries.

So we're very, very proud to be part of this. We're actually honored to be part of this and it's a big emotional day for us. But we're still working, we're still on the job.

CABRERA: I'm glad to hear that there haven't been any hiccups, so to speak. But what are the biggest challenges you're finding?

WHEELER: The challenges mainly are to make sure that the temperature is maintained. There's been a lot of talk about temperature. We testified to a congressional subcommittee this week about that. The minus 100-degree requirement with dry ice, making sure the dry ice moves, make sure the temperature is maintained, make sure that the dry ice that follows the shipment after the vaccine arrives is something that's important also. Making sure we coordinate the kits that are going out ahead of the vaccine.

So the administration sites have everything they need to do the dosing as soon as tomorrow morning. They're all arriving tomorrow morning.

CABRERA: I know you've invested in special technology to make sure the vaccines can stay at that extremely cold temperature and to account for other sensitivities related to this vaccine. Can you walk us through what happens from the moment the vaccine shipments arrive to putting them on planes or trucks to go to the delivery sites to the handoff, when they arrive at their destination?

WHEELER: Well, today because it's Sunday, we had a special aircraft positioned near Kalamazoo, near Michigan, where they left. You saw the trucks earlier. They flew down here. We had our number one pilot in our whole fleet, Captain Houston Mills, came in this morning at 12:00 noon and we off loaded into our sort facility. We call it the sunrise sort on Sunday. It went into the facility here. This is our largest air hub in the world and it's now been dispatched into can and to all the outbound flights.

The flights have all taken off as of now. And all but five ground operations have left this facility as of now. And by 8:00 tomorrow morning, we'll start to off load and we'll see shipments of vaccines starting to arrive as soon as 8:10, 8:15 in the morning.

CABRERA: All right. Wes Wheeler, appreciate it. Thank you again for being with us. And best of luck as this journey continues.

WHEELER: Thank you. Thank you, Ana.

CABRERA: We're following more breaking news in a very busy Sunday evening. The "Washington Post" reporting Russian government hackers have targeted U.S. government agencies. What could they be after and what could this reported escalation mean? Details next.

You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

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[19:28:03]

CABRERA: We're back with more breaking news into CNN. The U.S. Commerce Department has confirmed it was hacked and is the victim of a data breach. "The Washington Post" is reporting that Russian government hackers targeted Commerce as well as the Treasury Department and other government agencies.

Samantha Vinograd is a CNN national security analyst and a former senior adviser to the National Security adviser under President Obama.

Sam, what are your own sources telling you about this attack?

SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, what we've learned so far is that the alleged perpetrator of this attack is a familiar face to anyone that's been following the cyberspace over the last few years. The alleged perpetrator, the Cozy Bear group, has deep ties to Russian intelligence and has been implicated in similar attacks in the past.

To a certain extent, Ana, this feels like Groundhog Day because we talked about Cozy Bear attacking U.S. government agencies during the Obama administration. They Cozy Bear group attacked State Department, the White House and Joint Chiefs of Staff. This summer we learned that the Cozy Bear group was -- or APT29 was implicated in hacking COVID-19 related R&D.

They were alleged to have also attacked a leading cybersecurity firm, FireEye, a few weeks ago and now we've learned that they have yet again breached critical U.S. government systems.

CABRERA: Of course, we're just 38 days away from the inauguration. The transition of power, President-elect Joe Biden. Does this make our country more vulnerable to an attack?

VINOGRAD: Well, it certainly sends a message to the world that Russian intelligence is still able to attack critical U.S. government infrastructure. Right now federal authorities are undoubtedly trying to defend their systems to patch up any security vulnerabilities and also to identify the scale and scope of this attack, Ana. We don't yet know its lifespan when it started, if and when it stopped.

The full scope of the attack, mainly whether other U.S. government entities and individuals were implicated, and what Russian intelligence was trying to get from this operation, whether they got information, intelligence about U.S. activities, or whether they were able to disrupt operations.

[19:30:07]

At a minimum, Ana, this is a PR win for Putin. The narrative that Russia is omnipotent and can continue to harm the United States got some added steam tonight.

CABRERA: Sam Vinograd, many thanks.

VINOGRAD: Thank you.

CABRERA: Right now, millions of doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine are being shipped across the country in a historic effort. Up next, how hospitals are preparing.

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CABRERA: Today we watched as the first batch of a COVID-19 vaccine left Pfizer's facility in Michigan on its way to those who are first in line for the shots, healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities.

Now hospitals in all 50 states are preparing to administer these doses and CNN's Paul Vercammen joins us from the UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles.

And Paul, you're getting new numbers from LA this hour.

[19:35:00]

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, and they are ghastly, Ana. More than 13,000 new cases, more than 4,000 hospitalizations, including 101 people in the hospital here at UCLA for COVID-19.

Now, they are awaiting the arrival of the Pfizer vaccines. They say the next day or two, they say they'd begin to put shots into nurses and doctors arms here, this will be on Wednesday. Top priority, ER workers, as well as those in the ICU. The workers here, the health workers who have close contact with COVID-19 patients.

And one person who is not going to get the vaccine here is Dr. Cherry. He is the Chief Medical Officer. That's because he is part of the AstraZeneca trial. He had his second shot just the other day and he talked about why this means so much to him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ROBERT CHERRY, CHIEF MEDICAL AND QUALITY OFFICER, UCLA HEALTH: I thought it was really important for me to really contribute to the effort in a different way. And I was happy to have actually been eligible for the trial.

I did receive two doses of some sort of injection. Now, I don't know if I'm in the placebo group or the actual vaccine group. But I think it's really important that if individuals like myself can actually participate in a clinical trial like this, hopefully, it'll make people less hesitant about taking a vaccine for themselves as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERCAMMEN: Dr. Cherry added that here in Southern California, there had been some rumors going around that the vaccines were not working, and that they were problematic and he really wanted to dispel this notion in the black, Latino and other communities.

So he is out in front on this. And as we said, expect some shots to go into arms here at UCLA starting on Wednesday. Back to you, Ana.

CABRERA: Paul Vercammen in Los Angeles, thank you.

We have more on the vaccine roll out just ahead. But we're also following developments from Washington where a bipartisan group of lawmakers are deciding to split up their proposals for much needed COVID relief.

Congresswoman Ilhan Omar joins us live next to discuss.

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[19:41:27]

CABRERA: The first doses of the coronavirus vaccine are currently shipping across the country, and in the coming weeks, millions of Americans will get vaccinated, but the pandemic is far from over and millions are currently feeling its punishing financial effects.

Stimulus talks have stalled in Congress. But tonight, potential breakthrough. A bipartisan group of lawmakers has proposed splitting the stimulus plan into two relief packages. Here to discuss, Democratic Congresswoman from Minnesota, Ilhan Omar.

She is the author of "This is what America Looks Like: My Journey from Refugee to Congresswoman."

Congresswoman Omar, there's a lot of news. Thank you for joining us. I want to ask you first about this, you know, stimulus talks and where we are with the proposals. We're hearing about splitting the initial relief bill into a two-part proposal. Is this a breakthrough? And what can you tell us about it?

REP. ILHAN OMAR (D-MN): Great to be here with you, Ana. There is, as you know, clear desperation that is being felt by so many Americans across the country as they are looking at eviction moratoriums being lifted at the end of the month. Many people are worried about putting food on the table. So many people have been without a solid paycheck for far too long.

And as we've put together a continuing resolution to avoid government shutdown of one week, last week, we now are trying to think about what it means for us to come up with proposals to make sure that Americans who are suffering get the relief that they need. And many of my colleagues, you know, desperately are working

diligently to try to make sure that there is a direct payment for people, that there is an employment expansion, and we're going to continue to fight Mitch McConnell as he tries to protect corporations from accountability, as he tries to get them get them a liability shield.

CABRERA: Here's what we've learned, at least at this hour about this idea to split it into two different bills. One bill would be a $748 billion proposal, this would include money for small business loans, jobless benefits, as well as vaccine distribution funds, among other matters.

This other bill would deal with some of these thorny issues where there just has not been any early wiggle room from the different sides, from the two parties. This package would include the $160 billion for state and local, that I know is so important to you and other Democrats. And this other bill would also deal with the liability protections that have been such a sticking point for Democrats that Republicans are pushing. Can you agree to do this in two different bills?

OMAR: I mean, we're willing to agree to a lot of things because we understand that there is again, like I said, a clear desperation that's being felt by so many Americans. You know, we, as Congress have not passed a budget in 20 years, and we've continued to do a continuing resolution to make sure government is still functioning on behalf of the American people.

And these deals that we're coming up with and negotiating every single day is in that same spirit of trying to deliver needed support for so many people who are struggling in whatever mechanism that comes in.

CABRERA: So you would agree to putting aside the state and local, but does either package include the direct paychecks to Americans, which I know is really important to you and if not, would you vote against it?

[19:45:06]

OMAR: It is the fine details that matter, right? It's trying to make sure that people can directly get the assistance that they need. I have sent a letter to leadership that was co-signed by 60 of my colleagues, saying that we will not support a package that did not provide direct relief to people.

We know that so many businesses were able to get relief. We know that a lot of people have had the ability to get their unemployment extended. And so many people appreciated that direct payment that they got with the CARES Act, and now that's what they need.

And we're not willing, at least I'm not, in supporting any sort of legislation that is not giving that direct relief to people so that they are able to feed their children and make sure that they continue to be housed.

CABRERA: if Republicans agree to extend these additional unemployment payments per week, is that doable, if it doesn't include direct deposit type payment, that you know, $1,200.00 check or something?

OMAR: It's unfortunate, really, that whenever it is down to, you know, last minute negotiations, the people that are being compromised at that negotiating table are the ones that are hardest hit.

Americans need that direct cash payment to make sure that they're able to feed their children, and as someone who knows what it means, I've lived paycheck to paycheck, I know that as a mother of four children, I would be worried as heck right now if people were negotiating my livelihood out of a much needed stimulus package.

CABRERA: Well, I think there's an urgency though, for Americans. We've talked to so many families who are barely getting by, who are having to choose between keeping the lights on and paying, you know, for Christmas presents for their children or a man who says you know, he doesn't have rent available to pay for the next month. He'll be homeless.

So people are as saying, do something. Something has got to be better than nothing. But I do want to ask you about a few other questions, if you will, Congresswoman. Tonight, we also learned the White House and staffers at the White House will be among the first Americans to receive the COVID vaccine. What do you think of that?

Again, when we think about what gets to be prioritized is far away from what needs to be prioritized. Our frontline workers who have made the sacrifice to continue to make our country run should be the priority. People who have disproportionately been impacted by this virus should be the priority.

The White House and their staff being prioritized in a time where so many people are being devastated by the coronavirus really is unfortunate, disappointing and disturbing.

CABRERA: Let's talk about the incoming Biden administration. President-elect Biden has vowed to have the most diverse Cabinet in history. In your mind, is he delivering?

OMAR: As President-elect Biden says, keep the faith. We continue to keep the faith. I have been pleasantly surprised at the pace of his transition team that they are engaging with folks in developing a plan to curb the spread of the virus, to come up with an economy that can truly work for all Americans.

Their hundred-day plan really is one that is exciting to us, and we are currently circulating a petition asking them to be bolder, as they begin to think about what they will produce on behalf of the American people for those first hundred days.

CABRERA: Senator Bernie Sanders says that he doesn't think the progressive movement has a big enough seat at the table with the Biden team. Do you agree with him?

OMAR: I do. And this is, you know, what we have been saying and asking for. We worked diligently in trying to make sure that the people understood that it was important for us to get rid of Trump, but to have someone who was going to be partner with us in governing for progress in our country, and we continue to be hopeful in having that partnership as we have govern on behalf of our country.

CABRERA: Are you unhappy with any of his current picks?

OMAR: You know, holistically, I am not. I think that they have been quite diligent in putting together a really well-thought out transition team and we continue to see what comes out of the next couple of weeks as they solidify that list, and we will continue to push and make sure that our asks are clear and concise.

[19:50:17]

CABRERA: Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, thanks for joining us.

A brand new episode of Lisa Ling, "This is Life" premieres tonight and Lisa Ling is going to join us live next in the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:55:08]

CABRERA: Tonight on CNN, Lisa Ling is back with an all-new episode of "This is Life." And in this episode, Lisa meets people from all walks of life who have joined the club no one wants to be part of: families of victims and survivors who are joining forces to support each other and fight gun violence. Here's a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lisa, this is Katina. This is the mom we are going out with today.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How are you doing?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am all right. Sorry about your loss.

LISA LING, CNN HOST (voice over): Eight months ago, Katina's 18-year- old daughter, Dereonna was murdered at a busy intersection in broad daylight.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Somebody shot my baby. When I say wrong place, the wrong time. Where's the right place then? She was leaving school.

LING: What does it mean to you to have these parents here who are trying to support you?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to support each other. People don't understand until it actually happens to them. Nobody is exempt from it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABRERA: Joining us now is the host of "This is Life," Lisa Ling. We've had conversations about mass shootings and gun violence so many times, it's hard to know really where to begin yet another one, maybe you could start by telling us about the people you met, these members of the club no one wants to join.

LING: Yes, Ana, thanks for having me on. You know, I think we all can recognize that gun violence is -- it's just so pervasive in this country, and it's a uniquely American phenomenon, whether it's in inner cities or mass shootings.

And sadly, the number of survivors and family members of gun violence is growing as well. And over the years, many of them are starting to find each other and reach out to each other to offer support and comfort one another.

In fact, we profile a couple in our show who lost their daughter to the mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado in 2012, and then Sandy Hook happened shortly thereafter, and they quit their jobs. They sold their home and they set out to go to mass shootings to go and comfort people who'd gone through it, and also kind of give them a sense of what they were in store for -- I mean, as you know, this issue is so contentious that there are people who are fiercely gun advocates who will start to spew conspiracy theories, even threaten some of these victims and family members who are just dealing with such grief for themselves.

CABRERA: And what does that do? How important is it for these survivors to have one another to lean on to help get through the unthinkable?

LING: Well, I think it's important for people to have support when they undergo any kind of trauma or experience any kind of trauma. But in the case of family members and survivors of gun violence and you saw that clip of those mothers, every single one of them had lost a child to gun violence.

And because they rarely are able to get justice in the inner cities, the women you saw, the killers of their children have never been found, and some were killed years ago. And so they're not only supporting each other, they are standing up for each other and going out and trying to find justice themselves.

CABRERA: I was thinking about Sandy and Lonnie Phillips who I know are part of this show and I've had a chance to speak with them so many times as I was based in Colorado for quite some time and covered the Aurora theater shooting trial. And we talked to each other day in and day out there. They're incredible people, so strong.

You say in this show. This is a uniquely American club, a uniquely American situation. I'll ask the same question we ask really, every time something like this happens. What did you learn about why this keeps happening here?

LING: Well, look, Ana, you know this piece tonight isn't entirely anti-gun. In fact, there are people in this episode who aren't even against guns, but I think that we can all acknowledge that it's just too easy to get firearms in this country, and it's too easy for people who want to do harm to get firearms.

So there are people in this episode like Sandy and Lonnie, for example, who are just pushing really hard for more Federal uniformity when it comes to background checks and waiting periods and they would like to see the same laws apply to guns as driving and purchasing vehicles for example.

CABRERA: Lisa Ling, as always, thanks so much. Be sure to tune in to an all-new episode of "This is Life" with Lisa Ling. It airs tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern only on CNN.

And that does it for me tonight. I'm Ana Cabrera in New York. Thank you so much for spending part of your weekend with me.

Up next, we have a real treat for you. It's the 14th annual CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute.

It starts right now.

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