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3,656 Reported Dead in Single Day, Deadliest of Entire Pandemic; Congressional Leaders Still Trying to Reach Deal on Relief Bill; HHS Adviser Pushed for Herd Immunity, Says We Must go on with Life. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired December 17, 2020 - 13:00   ET

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

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[13:00:00]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: I am Brianna Keilar and I want to welcome our viewers here in the United States and around the world.

Before we get to breaking on a second vaccine and a stimulus deal meant to provide relief for families, I want to start with an American crisis that is unfolding before our eyes. 3,656 Americans were reported to have lost their lives yesterday, in one day. That is a record. It is the deadliest day of the pandemic. And that is on top of a new record also set for new cases and hospitalizations.

Cameras can't capture the suffering that's inside hospitals. They don't capture the haunting scene inside morgues. They can't even capture the grief because families can't hold large memorial services.

But one daughter who has lost her dad to the coronavirus is hoping that her words might capture what it is to watch a loved one day of this virus.

Sara Finefrock wrote an essay for The Washington Post, and she agreed to read it out loud for you, our viewers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA FINEFROCK, PENNED ESSAY ABOUT LOSING HER DAD TO COVID-19 (voice over): This of someone you love unconditionally. Choose the person who makes your heart fill with joy at a thought: Is it your child, your parent, your partner, your closest friend? Say their name to yourself, take a slow deep breath and close your eyes.

Now picture that person in a hospital bed. Machines are beeping. Your person is unconscious and on a ventilator. The machine is forcing air into their chest, making it rise and fall steadily. The nurse tells you your person spends 21 hours a day on their stomach, but they are upright today because today is their day.

Sometimes the machine sounds an alert because your person is fighting against the ventilator, trying to still maintain some type independence. It suddenly feels so morbid to think how casually we all say, so-and-so was a fighter. Picture yourself next to your person holding a cold, limp hand. It feels heavy because you are doing all the lifting. You catch a glimpse of your own reflection in the window and see a full-body paper suit, surgical gloves, an N95 mask and a face shield. A few minutes ago, the nurses asked you your glove size and you didn't know how to answer, and now your gloves feel too tight.

You realize the staff is telling you how to prepare for your person's transition. That's a nice way of saying your person is going to die, right now. And you will be there when it happens. And you already feel guilty because between the deep ache in your chest, you feel an odd comfort knowing they won't be in any pain anymore.

You think back to the ten days before your person was put on a ventilator. They couldn't get enough of a breath to relay a verbal will, so the two of you played a game of yes-or-no questions to give your person a chance to lay out their thoughts and end-of-life wishes without wasting air.

Boom, you are back in the intensive care unit with an overwhelming cacophony of beeping. The medical team tells you to look away as they remove the ventilator, and you notice they are making noise to prevent you from hearing your person choking and gasping for air. Then the room goes quiet. They have turned off the machines so that beeps and alarms don't further upset you. The data doesn't matter anymore.

A moment later, you become desperate to tell your person everything you think they need to hear before they die. Your mind panics and you already feel guilty about all that you have and haven't said.

Your person gasps. You look at the nurse who assures you it's normal and apologizes for something your person has just done. And immediately, you are jealous, or resentful, because this person, nurse, knows your person more than you do right now.

The nurse tells you your person is gone and shares their condolences. The words mean nothing as your world numbs. You thank them anyway. Suddenly, you don't know whether to stay or go. Someone has to re- explain to you the strict protocol on removing protective equipment. You must remove the too-tight gloves first, but don't touch anything. There is an order to it, and you are scared to deviate because you have people you love in the outside world whom you need to keep safe. You walk out, alone.

My experience was on Friday, November 13th, and my person was my dad. His name is George. His name was George. He was funny and giving, and frustrated me at times, and he was overly proud of my brother and I. He wore a mask, and he died of COVID-19. George made an impression on people he knew. To know him was to laugh with him.

So why have I spent the past few days worried he will be just a number the news shares each night? More than 1,300 Americans died of COVID-19 on Nov. 13. I worry George will be another anonymous statistic presented through jokes and memes about how awful 2020 was.

[13:05:02] I need George's death to mean something to strangers, just as much as you would want the person you loved mattered most if they died.

All I can do now, the only path left for me, is tell you to take COVID-19 seriously. Don't end up clutching your person's hand as their body no longer accepts air.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: That was Sara Finefrock. As she said, her dad was George. And his story, their number, is just one. It is just one of the people in that number of total deaths there on your screen, just one. 3,656 of those stories happened yesterday alone.

This is a hard time. But there is relief on the horizon. And today, it is coming in the promise of a meeting, an FDA advisory panel right now reviewing a second coronavirus vaccine. This is one from Moderna after Pfizer got the green light last week. And this morning, an FDA official says Moderna's candidate is expected to get the go ahead as well.

The company's medical officer talked about why this new mRNA technology used in this vaccine is safe.

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DR. TAL ZAKS, CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER, MODERNA: Our vaccine uses our body's own cells to activate the immune system. It enables these cells to make only the part of the virus that critical to the immune system to recognize.

Importantly, our vaccine platform has some inherent safety features. The manufacturing process in cell three (ph), it does not use products of animal or human origins, and it does not contain preservatives or (INAUDIBLE) thus avoiding some of the potential concerns of older vaccine technologies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: I want to turn now to Dr. Peter Hotez. He is the dean the Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. He is also co- director of the Texas Children's Hospital Center for Vaccine Development.

And, Dr. Hotez, I think as we reflect on this record number of deaths that were reported yesterday, we get the sense yesterday listening to Sara Finefrock of just how huge this loss is.

DR. PETER HOTEZ, DEAN OF TROPICAL MEDICINE, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: Yes. Brianna, it is incredible to think that that story has been repeated more than 300,000 times this year. We never had to get to that place. We never had a national control program, a national COVID containment program. We had a deliberate disinformation campaign coming out of the White House that said COVID-19 deaths are a hoax or the deaths are due to other causes and fake concepts of herd immunity and discrediting masks. And while I am a vaccine scientist and pediatrician, and I'm excited about the new vaccines, but the truth is we were backed into a corner now because we never had that national containment program and so many human tragedies of now 3,000 deaths per day, just like we just heard. And now, we're really left -- all we have left really is the biotechnology solution and vaccines. But that was never the way it was supposed to work. The vaccines were supposed to come along. They were going to be certainly be helpful adjuncts but never having to rely exclusively on them, and yet here we are today. So, thank you for sharing that story.

KEILAR: And thank you to Sara for sharing that with us, for writing it and for reading it, which I think makes it even more impactful.

You know, this number, this reported -- this record reported number of deaths yesterday, what is that from, Dr. Hotez? Is that the Thanksgiving surge?

HOTEZ: You know, there's so much screening levels of transmission across the country. I don't even know how you tell what's a surge or not anymore. This is just the way it is going to be now for the next few months until we get a significant percentage of the population vaccinated.

So, all of the models coming from IHME and elsewhere is saying it's going to be around 3,000 deaths per day, and that's what's happening. So, we hit 300,000 deaths this week. We're going to hit 400,000 American lives lost by a week or so after the inauguration. And it's going to be tough for the country to recover from that. That's the number of American G.I.s who lost their lives in World War II, but it's happening in a much more compressed timeframe.

So, this is the hard part now, is trying to convince people to maintain social distancing and to wear masks and to hang on for a couple more months until we can get them to the other side, get vaccinated. Yet we are seeing people being defiant, especially in the middle of the country and the southern part of the country. And this has to be the top priority to save as many lives now.

Just think how terrible you'll feel if you have to repeat that story we just heard from Sara, your father, your mother, your brother, your sister, when you know we just kept them safe for a few more weeks, they could get vaccinated on the other side and live a normal life.

[13:10:12]

And that's got to be our top priority as a message.

KEILAR: You actually got vaccinated Tuesday. So, it is Thursday. How are you feeling?

HOTEZ: I feel fine. You know, there was maybe a little of fever that night, didn't even bother taking my temperature and felt a little warm, some soreness in my arm, a little body ache. By mid-morning the next day, I was absolutely fine. And that's the way it will be for most Americans. So this is not a time to delay getting vaccinated. Other than the masks and the social distancing, the only way you can guarantee you or your loved ones won't wind up in a hospital or intensive care unit is to get the virus neutralizing antibodies into your system. That's how all the vaccines work, whether it's the mRNA from Moderna or Pfizer or the adenovirus vaccines, they're all doing the same thing. Don't overthink it. If you have the opportunity to get a vaccine, get it.

KEILAR: Dr. Hotez, it is wonderful to see you, as always. Thank you so much for joining us.

HOTEZ: Thanks, Brianna.

KEILAR: The coronavirus relief bill that so many Americans need is still isn't a done deal. And now there's controversy over the amount of cash that will be going to Americans.

Plus, what's the president doing today about the crises that are facing this country, including the suspected Russian cyberattack on the U.S. government?

A newly revealed email show yet another Trump appointee pushing herd immunity in the U.S. and we will roll the tape.

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[13:15:00]

KEILAR: It is looking like lawmakers will reach a deal on an economic relief package, but it may not cross the finish line before the government is set to shutdown tomorrow night. One point of convention is stimulus checks. Some lawmakers like Senator Bernie Sanders say that including them is progress, but it is not enough.

Millions of Americans are suffering. You can just look at the latest unemployment data to see that. It is at the highest level in three months with another 885,000 people filing for first-time unemployment benefits.

Let's talk about this with CNN Global Economic Analyst Rana Foroohar and we also have CNN Economics Commentator Kevin Hassett with us.

Rana, is Senator Sanders correct? Do these stimulus checks need to be bigger?

RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: You know, at this point any stimulus is good stimulus. I would really say that you have to take what you can get. I think Democrats would have liked to have had a lot more than the current package that's on the table, but both sides have made compromises. Republicans have given up on the idea of some sort of a blanket exemption for businesses that might be liable during COVID, Democrats had to pare back their demands particularly for more state aid. That's a big deal on their part. It is time to come together. Let's not worry about the details.

KEILAR: Okay. Kevin, you say it's going to be a bleak winter. $600, I mean, what does that do for Americans? Is that enough to get them through a bleak winter?

KEVIN HASSETT, ECONOMICS COMMENTATOR: Well, you and I were just talking about this, I guess, yesterday. The fact is that I spent last night modeling it. And I expected that absent the stimulus package, the first quarter would be not as bad as the second quarter last year but one of the worst quarters in U.S. history. This is a $900 billion package that's pretty much all jumping in in the first quarter. And that's actually enough money so that you can get the number positive. And so, we avoid the crater that was going to happen if we didn't have a stimulus with this bill.

Now, could you argue parts of it should be bigger and smaller? Of course, that's why they're going to dicker, people I talk to at the White House say they probably have got have to have a two-day extension to finish it off, that they're going to dicker right into the end. But the point it is big enough, I think, to make it so that that crater of the first quarter that we talked about in the past is not going to happen.

KEILAR: Rana, lawmakers want to tie this deal to a $1.4 trillion funding bill that would keep the government open through next September. Why are these being tied together?

FOROOHAR: Well, in part because if the government shuts down, that itself is an economic hit, not just in the U.S. because there's so much government labor, particularly now, government offices include a lot of essential workers, but also overseas. People have been watching, our creditors, our overseas creditors look and see, wow, the U.S. is having yet another shutdown, yet another budget wrangling. That starts to erode trust in American credit, in our T bills, in our dollars. That is not what we need in the middle of a pandemic.

KEILAR: And, Kevin, this urgency to reach a deal has been kicked up a notch because of the runoff elections in Georgia. Republicans could lose control of the Senate in the two seats that are up there. Is that a possibility?

HASSETT: Well, of course it is a possibility. You know, I am not a political analyst, but I do look at betting markets. Right now, they're saying that there's about 30 percent chance that the Democrats capture the Senate and betting markets are about the best guess, that's what economics literature says.

And so I think that that actually is having an impact on the stimulus right now because I think that Republicans control the Senate figure if they pass something right now, then at least they have a chance to have impact on the content of the bill. If they lose the Senate, then they will have no impact at all. And so they have a benefit of moving now.

And I think the Democrats are being quite patriotic saying, look, we have got to move now because, otherwise, we're going to have that crater, the one that you and I have been talking about.

[13:15:00] And so I think that it's going to happen. I thought maybe it was going to happen yesterday. But now they say they need a two-day extension, is what I'm hearing. But it will be here before Christmas, for sure.

KEILAR: Of course, Rana, the details of the deal aren't final. We don't know everything there. But we understand the Democrats have dropped their push for state and local government funding. What's the effect of that going to be when you have jobs that are obviously dependent on that funding?

FOROOHAR: Yes. It was a big thing to drop. And I agree with Kevin, I think the Democrats are really being quite patriotic and putting it all on the field, as they say. Because when you drop the aid to state and local authorities, that's where a lot of the actual on-the-ground aid happens that's where a lot of delivery of education and health care and vaccine rollout happens. So that's a big thing to give up.

In an ideal world, they wouldn't have to do it. But, frankly, at this moment, even some stimulus, no matter how faulty the plan might be is better than none.

KEILAR: Kevin, I wonder, as you point out, this may stop the crater that we have been discussing, but when you're talking about going into, say, an individual households, someone who is very much in need now and $600 isn't necessarily going to cut it, I mean, I know you look at a chart, you look at a graph, maybe it turns out not to be as bad as it could have been, but what about those Americans who they're handed a check but it isn't enough to get them through?

HASSETT: Right. Well, you know, the check that -- I agree with you that $600 is probably not enough for a lot of people. But, for me, the thing that I think is not enough, if you look at it through an emerging literature, there has been a bunch of studies at the National Bureau of Economic Research of the previous round. And they found that the unemployment insurance plus up was a really, really, really big positive support for the consumption of people most in need.

And so to think if I were there, if I were arguing, and I know that we've got to get a bill passed, probably you can't have everything you want, I would make the unemployment insurance plus up bigger because those are the people who need the money most. And there's a sign that about 85 percent of the cash that got sent out in the increased unemployment insurance benefit got consumed right away, which suggests that those people really, really needed the cash.

Now, the other things, the checks to everybody else that has jobs and so on, they'll need that money too. But I think U.I. is where I would draw the line if I were negotiating right now. I would try to get that benefit bigger than it is right now.

FOROOHAR: I very much agree with that. And I think it is important to say that even when we see economic growth start to tick up, the unemployment rate is probably going to lag and be higher for some time now, and that's in part because the companies that come through the pandemic are going to be more digital, and means that they tend to need less workers. They are replacing jobs with technology and software.

KEILAR: Yes, it's a very good point. Rana, Kevin, thank you so much for your insights there.

So, what did the president do today to help the stimulus talks? What did he do today about the deadliest day of the pandemic? We're going to discuss his disappearing act.

Plus, new evidence that many in the Trump administration pushed herd immunity, which health experts say would cost millions of lives.

And Tyson Plant managers fired for placing bets on who on their teams would get sick with COVID.

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KEILAR: Throughout the pandemic, even as Trump administration officials all the way to the top insisted, they were not pursuing herd immunity with the laissez faire response to the coronavirus, their words and actions gave them away.

Herd immunity, of course, is when enough of the population has been infected with a pathogen that it provides protection for those who haven't been. With the coronavirus, in the absence of a vaccine, 2 million Americans would have to die by the time we would achieve herd immunity. Needless to say, it is not a public health strategy.

But we have now learned a former top appointee of the president's urged health officials to make it so according to emails obtained by the House Oversight Committee. In one of them, Paul Alexander, who is former senior adviser at Health and Human Services Department, said in July that Americans, quote, must go on with life. He said this.

So the bottom line, if it is more infectious now, the issue is who cares. If it causing more cases in young, my word is, who cares? As long as we make sensible decisions and protect the elderly in nursing homes, we must go on with life. Who cares if we test more and get more positive tests?

In another email, he writes, quote, there is no other way, we need to establish herd. And it comes about allowing the non-high-risk groups expose themselves to the virus, period. And he punched his caps lock button to make his point there. So adamant was he that herd immunity was the only way to address the virus.

Of course, he is dead wrong. Of course, there is another way. In the history of our country, the government has asked Americans many times to go to war to protect their nation. And that has meant sacrificing months and even years with families. They have been asked to risk their limbs, their minds, their lives.

On the home front, Americans have been asked to ration food and other goods to practice bombing drills and repurpose their businesses.