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U.S. Hits Grim Milestone as Coronavirus Cases Top 20 Million; Vice President Pence Asks Judge to Dismiss Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX) Lawsuit; Iranian Commander Says, Any Retaliation may come from Within U.S. Aired 1-1:30p ET

Aired January 01, 2021 - 13:00   ET

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

[13:00:00]

ALISON KOSIK, CNN ANCHOR: Only hours into the New Year and the stage is set for a chaotic battle on Capitol coming in just a matter of days. CNN is learning that at least 140 House Republicans are going to join in President Trump's fight to overturn the election results. They're planning to vote against counting the electoral votes January 6th, the day Congress is expected to certify Biden's victory.

It is the latest in a series of last ditch efforts from the president and his allies. But not taking the bait, Vice President Mike Pence. He is pushing back against a lawsuit from Republicans attempting to empower him to overturn the election results.

But while the president's attention is fixated on the election, the nation is suffering. We close out 2020 setting new chilling pandemic records. In just the final three days of the year, over 10,000 Americans died from COVID. Hospitalizations hit record highs. More than 125,000 Americans are currently in the hospital with the virus. And just moments ago the nation surpassed a sobering 20 million coronavirus cases.

Let's begin in California. Health officials in Los Angeles County are warning that their hospitals are on the brink of catastrophe as COVID cases skyrocket. CNN's Paul Vercammen is live in Los Angeles.

Paul, I know that officials there are bracing for a post-holiday surge on top of the surge that's happening there now.

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Alison. They're horrified by what they think could happen if people had those get-togethers and gatherings last night. Let's look at the statewide moving average of deaths because this is an alarming number. And in Los Angeles County alone, you see that that is not a curve, it is a skyrocket upward, in Los Angeles County alone, 290 deaths at the very last count.

And the hospitalizations that you alluded to, Alison, in California, are also just taxing the entire system. So many people are being hospitalized, more than 20,000. You have a situation here where resources are thin, staffing is thin, equipment is running low. And for these doctors and nurses who deal with it on a day in, day out basis, it is absolutely wearying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. NICOLE VAN GRONINGEN, CEDARS-SINAI MEDICAL CENTER: I can tell you that we really are at a breaking point.

We're also worried that at some point soon we're going to have a really tough time finding the space and staff to take care of all of the sick patients coming in with COVID-19 who really need our help.

SCOTT BRICKNER, REGISTERED NURSE, CEDARS-SINAI MEDICAL CENTER: The best way to describe it that I could tell a friend recently was, it's like treading water from 100 feet below the surface. You're already drowning, but you just have to keep trying because that's what you can do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERCAMMEN: And moving a little further south in California, in San Diego County, there are now four cases of the U.K. variant of COVID- 19, three more cases turned up. Two of them men in their 40s, another man in his 50s. You might recall earlier, there was a man in his 30s who had the U.K. variant.

So, in all four cases, none of these connected yet, but they do say that this suggests that this U.K. variant is more widespread than first thought in the San Diego County area, and, of course, they're going to closely monitor that as the whole state is on pins and needles reckoning with the spread of the virus at this time.

Reporting from Los Angeles, I'm Paul Vercammen, back to you, Alison.

KOSIK: Yes. And we are on pins and needles with you, Paul. Thanks very much for your report.

Joining me to discuss, Dr. Seema Yasmin, CNN Medical Analyst and former CDC disease detective. She's also author of the new book, Viral B.S., medical myths and why we fall for them. Dr. Yasmin, great to see you.

DR. SEEMA YASMIN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: You too, Alison. Happy New Year.

KOSIK: Happy New Year. I wish it was a happier start. Officials in San Diego, as you heard, believe that this new COVID strain could already be widespread in San Diego. Do you share that concern? And how likely is it that this strain is already spreading more than we realize?

YASMIN: I do share that concern, Alison. I think, let's be honest, this new variant has probably been here for awhile. It is not even new. I shouldn't even use that terminology. I think it has been around awhile, even in the U.K. where it was first detected. We think it has been there for a matter of months. It was only just detected a bit more recently than that.

But now, we're seeing these cases of this particular variant pop up all over the world, from Singapore to Australia, Canada, right here in the U.S., bearing in mind that in the U.S., we are doing a tiny fraction of the world's load of coronavirus gene sequencing. So the U.S. may have the world's most coronavirus cases, but we are number 43 on the list when it comes to how much gene sequencing each nation is doing. We are doing 0.3 percent of gene sequencing of all the Americans who have become infected.

[13:05:03]

So this is the tip of the iceberg. I am quite sure that there is much more spread of this variant than we are actually picking up just because we're not looking for it.

KOSIK: And your job at the CDC previously was to work around the world and track diseases and research the outbreaks. You don't sound surprised that this COVID strain is making its way to different countries, but is it even possible for these vaccines that are coming out to be prepared to handle these variants?

YASMIN: Well, the good news is that even though we are having more evidence becoming available that the new variant is a lot more contagious, the good news part of this is that it doesn't seem to cause any more severe illness, it doesn't seem to cause an uptick in hospitalizations itself, it doesn't seem to cause an increase in deaths from COVID-19.

And at least what the mRNA vaccine makers are telling us, Pfizer/BioNTech and at Moderna is that their vaccines do still seem to work against the newer variant. My concern is that anytime you let a virus spread this wildly out of control with so many transmissions from one person to another over such a long period of time, you just increase your likelihood for more genetic mutations within the virus for newer variants to come along.

And what if, heaven forbid, we end up in a situation where there is a variant which newer vaccines don't work against. That's why we have to do everything possible right now to slow down and eventually stop the spread of this virus.

KOSIK: Yes. And then there's the pace of distributing the vaccines that are out currently. It's put the U.S. significantly behind where we expected to be at this point. Local hospitals say they needed more direction and planning from the federal government, the president has been putting the bulk of that responsibility right there on the states, which are overwhelmed.

Dr. Yasmin, what is the issue in getting vaccines distributed? Who do you think holds the blame for the slow rollout?

YASMIN: So let's just start with the fact about how far behind we are as of yesterday. Operation Warp Speed had promised us that 20 million Americans would have received at least the first dose of the mRNA vaccine, and it's closer to around maybe 3 million Americans receiving their first dose.

Alison, if we carry on at the very slow pace that we are vaccinating folks right now, it would take us a decade, I'm not even making this up, ten years before we have vaccinated the roughly 260 million Americans needed for us to achieve herd immunity. We cannot continue at that slower pace.

And I think what has happened is what you just mentioned, that states have kind of been left in the lurch. There was a CNN survey a few weeks ago, Alison, asking states like how prepared do you feel about rolling out the world's biggest vaccination program, and so many of them just felt like they did not have the resources, did not have the planning, and things like Operation Warp Speed saying to states get ready, 100,000 doses on its way to you, and then saying the days before the delivery, sorry, it's going to be half that number, quarter that number. That can't happen. This has just to be a lot more seamless than it currently is.

KOSIK: Right. And, Dr. Yasmin, some health experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci have suggested looking into the idea of spreading out more of these first doses of the vaccine instead of holding back for people's second doses. Of course, the idea, get more people vaccinated with their first shot and then circle back. What do you think of that plan?

YASMIN: It is not even a theoretical idea at this point, Alison. The U.K. has started doing this. And let me explain quickly what's happening in the U.K. About three weeks ago, tens of thousands of Brits, mostly older adults, received their first dose of the mRNA vaccine, were told, come back in three weeks, 21 days, you'll get your second dose.

Now, doctors in the U.K. are in this awful position of having to call up tens of thousands of vulnerable Brits and saying, sorry, I know we promised you a second dose so you would be fully vaccinated, but the government has changed its mind, so we're now having to cancel tens of thousands of appointments. What that means, especially in the context of Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, is you have all these folks walking around, they've just had one dose.

And the clinical trial told us exactly what happens when someone gets one dose and then 21 days later gets a second dose. Yes, the first dose does give you some level of protection against the virus, but we only know that that lasts about 21 days, because on that 21st day in the trial, they got their second dose. So in the real world, what this means is we don't know. People are saying, well, how protected am I? And we're saying, we just don't know because the trials didn't tell us that.

In the U.K., folks are now being told, you may get that second dose 70, 80, 84 days after your first dose, and we just don't know how well that's going to work. So, besides the confusion, logistical the challenges this has really put on already overwhelmed doctors, I think there's that more confusion.

And also just the fact that these government policies are not based on science and we need to go back to what the clinical trials told us and make sure that we are following the best evidence. And, certainly, with the mRNA vaccine trials, that did not tell us what to do besides dosing at either 21 days or 28 days after the first dose.

[13:10:04]

So that's my concern.

KOSIK: Okay. Dr. Seema Yasmin, thanks for your expertise.

YASMIN: Thank you, Alison.

KOSIK: The number of Republicans in Congress who plan to join the president in his efforts to overturn the election continues to grow. CNN learned at least 140 House Republicans plan to vote against counting the electoral votes when Congress meets on Wednesday.

CNN's Phil Mattingly is live with the latest. So, Phil, are you expecting even more Republicans to join the president's efforts?

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL: Yes, I think it is a distinct possibility. And I think if you want to know the answer why that's the case, it is not necessarily because dozens upon dozens of Republicans think that there was a significant election fraud of which there's no proof of, they more are interested in currying favor with the person who is the

most powerful individual in the party, and that's President Trump.

Even if he is no longer going to be in office in January 20th, you see Republicans who understand the pull he has with the base, who understand the pull he has politically. And they also understand the practical implications of this vote are not going to overturn an election. I think that's an important point to put out there right now.

All this means, when you have a House member and a senator, it means that their objection is valid and it means both chambers are going to have to recess when that objection comes. It means two hours of debate, maximum, and then it means they will vote. And they will vote on every single objection whether as a senator or and a house member.

So it's going to be a long day or days, plural, we'll have to see how that plays out, but it will not overturn the election because Democrats control the House. There are a number of Republican senators who have made clear they believe Joe Biden is the president-elect.

So the real purpose of this is essentially a political exercise. And to look at it as anything different is just not to be paying attention to facts and reality. And I think if you talk to Republicans, and they're actually being candid with you, they will acknowledge that. Some of them make clear that they're doing this because their constituents have asked them to do this, or they're doing this because they want to raise specific issues. But the reality remains the same. Joe Biden is the president-elect and Joe Biden, on January 20th, will become the 46th president of the United States.

KOSIK: Great. So the real purpose of this is a political exercise, and a long day for you Wednesday, Phil. We'll be watching. Phil Mattingly, thanks so much.

Still ahead this hour, a disappointing outlook for Republicans who want Vice President Mike Pence to try overturning the 2020 election. The message Pence is sending to his party, next.

Plus, the same community most at risk when it comes to the coronavirus is also the least likely to get vaccinations. We are joined by two doctors with a big vision to help black Americans trust the vaccine.

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KOSIK: Vice President Mike Pence has rejected a last ditch effort by Republicans to get him to overturn President-elect Joe Biden's victory. The vice president asking a federal judge to throw out a request from Texas Republican Congressman Louie Gohmert that attempts to force Pence to ignore the electoral votes of several key states.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is live at the White House with the latest. So, Representative Louie Gohmert just responded to Vice President Pence's opposition to the lawsuit. What did he say?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. He is not happy with this response that we saw from those Justice Department attorneys who were representing the vice president here, asking the federal judge to reject this lawsuit, basically saying that Louie Gohmert and company are suing the wrong defendant here.

And you're right, we do have a response from Louis Gohmert who, we should remind viewers, is a close ally of the president. And so this is notably pitting the vice president against one of the president's top allies in the House.

And Gohmert said in response, quote, they say that the vice president, the glorified envelope opener in chief has no authority to preside over anything of else or to decide anything of substance or even to count the votes in those weighty envelopes. He is only the envelope opener.

And so, basically, what he was arguing in this lawsuit was that the vice president did have authority to change the outcome of the election. And so if this federal judge does rule that, of course, as we've noted, Pence's role is just procedural, it could help take some of the heat off him, given that we know the president himself has taken a heightened interest in what Vice President Mike Pence is going to do next week when Congress does meet.

And as Phil was talking about, we know what the House is going to do, we now know what some Republican senators are going to do, but we still don't know what the vice president himself is going to do. Because, of course, he just is this procedural role, but the president is looking for him to do more politically and he is also balancing his own political ambitions with this and his loyalty to the president, of course.

KOSIK: And, Kaitlan, I know you will be following this and we will be following you. Kaitlan Collins, thanks very much.

Joining me now to talk more about the Republican-led effort to object to Joe Biden's Electoral College victory next week is Bill Kristol, Editor-at-Large of The Bulwark. Great to see you, Bill.

BILL KRISTOL, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, THE BULWARD: Good to see you and Happy New Year, Alison.

KOSIK: Happy New Year.

So, you come with a lot of experience here, you worked in Republican administrations. What are you thinking here? Do you expect Vice President Mike Pence to follow precedent here and certify votes next week?

KRISTOL: I think he ultimately will. How much rope he gives to his fellow Republicans to object and how seriously -- whether he bends over backwards to let them make a spectacle of it or whether he tries, in a sense, to curb their efforts, it's hard to say. But if you step back, we shouldn't lose sight of the forest from the trees, and we need to follow every zig and zag of these ridiculous lawsuits by Louie Gohmert and so forth.

But it is unbelievable.

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And I say this as someone who served in Republican administrations and was a loyal Republican two or three decades or maybe more, that they are going this far in trying to undercut, to overturn the democratic election. One of the two major political parties, an election that's not as close as the 2000 election, not as close as to the 2004 election, really, not as close as 1960. No one did this.

No president has ever tried to gin up crowds to come to Washington to challenge the reporting of Electoral College votes, which have been fairly and freely -- fairly counted, freely cast and fairly counted, it's a huge turnout. And no president has done this. Never have major figures in the political party tried to do this. So it is really astounding.

And one knows, of course, that democracy is fragile and it is an experiment and we had a civil war and we've had many failings, but I really got to say, I just never quite expected to see this in my own sort of personal and political lifetime.

KOSIK: Well, you're watching it now. And as we're watching it, we're seeing, again, another twist and turn here. President Trump is praising Republican Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri after announcing he'll object to certify Biden's Electoral College victory.

In a tweet here, Trump writes America is proud of Josh and the many others who are joining him. CNN is reporting at least 140 Republican house members could join next Wednesday in doing so.

So what does this tell you about the Republican Party right now? KRISTOL: I don't think -- I'm not so sure they'll get to 140 from the people I've talked to, they're going to get a lot of Republican House members, some Republican senators led by Josh Hawley, and now, as you report, praised by the president.

And if this were abroad in some country in Central or Eastern Europe or Latin America, would say, boy, that democracy is kind of shaky. I mean, the whole point of democracy is the peaceful transfer of power, the party in power loses, they accept the results, and that seems not quite to be happening here. So I think it will happen, but shakiness is worrisome and irresponsibility, the demagoguery, the reckless kind of throwing matches -- spilling gasoline around as much as you can and tossing matches around is really shocking.

So, we'll see how the Republicans sort it out. We'll see if anyone pays a price for either, right? And if you support this, does leadership tell you, if you support this, you can't be in leadership, can't be a committee chair or ranking member or is it the opposite, to ones that resist this, I think correctly and courageously, end up paying the political price in the Republican Party. That's a huge question going ahead.

KOSIK: Yes. In the meantime, Republicans are divided. I mean, even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell questioned Hawley's motive behind this vote, telling his caucus that this is a vote of conscience. I want to play what a soon to be sworn in Republican congressman said

of his decision-making on the vote this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLOS GIMENEZ (R), FLORIDA REPRESENTATIVE-ELECT: I will sit as a juror and I'll listen to the evidence and then I'll make up my mind once I listen to the evidence.

I am not saying that the results of the election are unfair, I am just saying that this should teach us a lesson as a country that elections should be conducted a certain way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOSIK: What is this about? Is this all to please the outgoing president, is this all about loyalty?

KRISTOL: Yes. I mean, he is not a juror. We don't have jurors to judge our votes. We vote. And the votes are counted and the electors vote according to voters in each state. He is not going to see any evidence. It's really ludicrous and farcical, that statement, and, of course, it is just a cover for pandering to the president for, yes, being loyal to the president, pandering to him, and what is at his most (INAUDIBLE). And to many of his voters and supporters whom he's helped convince that there was terrible fraud and that this is some way to overcome it.

So it's really a very -- think about that statement though by an elected official who is going g to swear an oath to the Constitution, who thinks he is supposed to be a juror of what? Of what? There have been 60 court cases. So the judges have decided, they're supposed to ratify the vote of the people.

KOSIK: Okay, quick answer here. Trump leaves office in 20th. I want know where you see the GOP heading, especially with what looks to be 20 Republican Senate seats up for re-election next year.

KRISTOL: That's a huge question, one of the biggest questions of the next four years. I would say the last two months have been very depressing for those of us that hoped for GOP or Republican Party that would sort of come back from Trump and Trumpism, the degree of accommodating of Trump, the degree of demagoguery, has made you wonder if it can come back in the near future.

KOSIK: All right. Bill Kristol, great having your perspective.

KRISTL: Iran marks the one year anniversary of top General Qasem Soleimani's death, and with a t a threat to the U.S. that retaliation may still be coming. how the Pentagon is reacting, next.

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KOSIK: As tensions rise between the U.S. and Iran a year after the killing of top Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, the man who replaced him as the head of Iran's elite military unit says, America could face a threat within its own borders.

CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr joins us live. Barbara, Happy New Year. There is some movement among Iranian maritime forces that is concerning intel officials.

[13:30:00]

What can you tell us?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Happy New Year to you too, Alison. And the U.S. military today hopes it is going to be a quiet and calm new year.