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Eleven Republicans In Senate Express Support For Senator Josh Hawley's Plan To Object To Certifying President-Elect Joe Biden; Coronavirus Cases Rising In States Across U.S.; Campaigning Continues In Georgia For U.S. Senate Runoff Races; New York City Mayor Vows To Vaccinate One Million Residents In One Month; Interview With Democratic Georgia Senate Candidate Raphael Warnock; Pace Of Coronavirus Vaccinations In U.S. Behind Schedule; Vatican Announces Vaccination Plan. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired January 02, 2021 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

JULIA MAHLSTADT, SINGLE MOM OF THREE YOUNG CHILDREN: My kids weren't saying to me you're just a teacher, you're always saying school, this and that. So I wanted to get back to our community at St. Theresa, our school is just phenomenal. It's the best in the state. And I really wanted us to get back in there.

And I just called them, basically, and said, where can I fit in? What can I do? Here's my talents, this is what I like. I've learned I love teaching. I've learned I loved it. I found that out about myself, and I also found out I like teaching the youngest. So my two-year-old, she was a lot of fun, singing and things like that.

So I'm now going to be working in the child care in the two-year-old room in the morning, so I'll be getting to school with my kids, everybody in tow, 7:30 a.m. And in the mornings, I'll be working with the two-years-old in the childcare and my daughter. And then I'll be going to my salon and working in the afternoons. Thankfully, Des Moines is small, and we're talking about 10 blocks off the same street.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Unbelievable. You found your untapped talent, and you're making lemonade out of a healthy dose of lemons, but Julia, you're really an inspiration, because a lot of people are experiencing exactly what you are, and you are being adaptive and having to mac every day. Julia Mahlstadt, thank you so much. All the best to you and your family.

MAHLSTADT: Thank you very much.

WHITFIELD: Hello again, everyone, and thank you so much for being with me. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Happy New Year.

We are following breaking news this hour. A group of 11 Republican senators and senator-elect say they will vote to support Missouri Senator Josh Hawley and his plan to object to certifying President- elect Joe Biden on Wednesday. With us now, senior political analyst Mark Preston and presidential

historian Tim Naftali. Good that you could both be with me. Happy New Year. Wow, what a way to start the New Year, right? Mark, you first. How might this play out on Wednesday? Will there be one objection, that by Senator Hawley, and then it's given two hours time of debate, or might there be many objections?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Fred, just in the last hour since this news broke just about an hour or so ago, we have learned some more details about this. We've learned that these 11 senators are going to be joining Senator Hawley in voting against any state's disputed elections, at least that's what we're hearing from Senator Ted Cruz, who has released a joint statement with the senators on it.

Just to take a step back, Let's just think about what's going to happen on Saturday. You have the president of the United States, the outgoing president of the United States, is calling his supporters to come to rally and to protest on his behalf because he thinks that he should get another four years. At the same time, you're going to have 12 senators on the floor as well as multiple, multiple number of House members, Republicans, who are going to object to these election results.

Now, let's just go back. If you look in Georgia, for example, the governor is Republican, the secretary of state is Republican, the lieutenant governor is Republican. These guys are all Trump people, and yet they say the election is fine. We saw the Supreme Court as well dismiss cases. We've seen courts across the country right now dismiss cases, but --

WHITFIELD: We're talking about 60 cases dismissed.

PRESTON: Sixty cases. And what we're going to see on Tuesday, rather, Wednesday, we're going to see basically chaos, controlled chaos, but it's certainly going to be chaos on the Senate floor. It's going to be very bad for democracy.

WHITFIELD: So Tim, what is this? Is this posturing without a mission, or posturing in futility, because this is not likely to change the outcome of this free and fair election? Joe Biden will be inaugurated, and there's your next president. What's this really about?

TIM NAFTALI, CNN PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Fred, this is cynical, anti- democratic posturing by a group of people who are afraid of their own constituents, and some of whom would prefer the kind of authoritarian government that a second term of Donald Trump would bring to Washington. That's what it is.

If you look at the Electoral Act of 1887, not something I have looked at very frequently in the past, but this is going to be the first major test of it in Congress. There's no basis for what Josh Hawley and his confederates are planning to do. There is no predicate for this kind of dispute, because the states are actually, according to that law, which was passed in response to the really tough outcome of the 1876 election, the states are the ones who are supposed to determine the certification, which is what the Constitution wants, and the states are supposed to be given, really, the final word.

[14:05:07]

And if there's no debate at the highest level of any of the states, in other words, if they don't send in two rival lists of electors, then there's nothing for Congress to do except posture. And that's what we're about to see on Wednesday.

WHITFIELD: So Mark, Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, he did urge his caucus not to do this, yet at the same time, also say, hey, I'll allow you a vote of conscience. Is this that, but 2.0? Is this more than he bargained for? Is it potentially disruptive?

PRESTON: In this day and age, you have to wonder if Mitch McConnell is thinking to himself, could it be actually worse than what we're in right now? Could we see more defections from Republicans senators, and senators who over the years who have developed a gravitas and an honesty, regardless of whether they're Democrats or Republicans. So he has lost 12 of his Republicans right now.

But as we've talked about last hour, it's their prerogative to go ahead and do this. Mitch McConnell certainly wouldn't like to see this happen. He probably just wants to move right on and get back to the business. As we've discussed Mitch McConnell in the past, he's a pragmatist. He is a legislator, and he is a politician. So he'll let them do what they want to do. He won't necessarily appreciate it, but the fact is, they'll have their moment in time.

Now, for Tim, I always think about the past four years of the Trump administration, and specifically the past six months. And I wonder, what is history going to say about all of these Republicans who have gone out and knowingly, knowingly lied or have tried to thwart the Constitution? I just can't imagine history is ever going to be kind to them.

WHITFIELD: I wonder about that, Tim, as well. Is the damage to the party, the Republican Party, and to those who are following suit, whether it be Hawley or even the president of the United States, or is the damage mostly to the presidency?

NAFTALI: Historians often disagree, but it will be interesting to see if this group of anti-constitutionalists will be remembered the way that Joe McCarthy is remembered, as people who attacked democracy and civil rights out of demagoguery, and in this case, out of support for a demagogue. It's too early to tell. But one thing I can say for now is they assume there will be no public shaming in their home states. They're assuming that. In fact, I think many of them are doing this because they are afraid of public shaming.

But let's make clear one thing. Many of the voters in their votes who want them to do this are victims of a disinformation campaign led by a failed presidential candidate. These senators have an obligation to this country to clear up the disinformation and to persuade their voters that, in fact, this election was fair and free. They have an obligation to do that. It's worse than cowardice for them to say now, well, our -- my supporters believe Trump was denied a fair second term. It's up to the senators to prove to them and persuade them and no, in fact, they are victims of disinformation.

WHITFIELD: Except it seems, Mark, perhaps there are those who feel like capitalizing off the misinformation is going to be, if not short- term, maybe even long-term beneficial to them. Otherwise, why do it?

PRESTON: Absolutely right. And this is politically craven. I think that you could probably go through every one of those lawmakers and you could find the reason why they have decided to do this. Primarily, I do think that Tim is right. You have a lot of them that are afraid of their own constituencies, and quite frankly, some of them might actually believe it, which is hard to even fathom at this point. But some of them might actually believe it.

But there is long-term political calculations that are being made right there. If you look at some of these folks, they're interested in running for the White House. They want Trump supporters to back them in 2024, or 2028. So there is an incredible amount of political maneuvering going on around here.

And just to add to one thing that Tim said and to button it up with you, Fred, is that in the statement, they don't, these 11 senators don't say that they have any evidence that there has been voting fraud, nor do they have any specific examples. What they do say is that there are allegations, and we haven't seen allegations like this ever.

And there's a poll that shows that the American people believe it. Well, let's just pause for a second. They believe it because the president of the United States and his allies have used the soapbox of the White House and the federal government to perpetuate this lie, and that's why they believe it.

[14:10:04]

WHITFIELD: We'll leave it there for now, gentlemen. Thank you so much, Mark Preston, Tim Naftali, thank you.

More than three million ballots have already been cast in Georgia's early voting period ahead of Tuesday's U.S. Senate runoff races, and those voters tend to lean Democratic, which has Republicans worried about the turnout that they will need to win on Election Day. Three of the candidates are crisscrossing the state in the final weekend before the election, except Senator David Purdue, who is quarantining after coming into close contact with someone with coronavirus.

Kyung Lah is on the trail in Peachtree City. So how does this last campaigning look this weekend?

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're crisscrossing the state, and they are focusing on turnout, at least the Republicans are really leaning in heavy on trying to get their voters out to the polls on Tuesday on Election Day. The reason why they're emphasizing this so much is because of what you just said, Fred, is that the Democrats have been overperforming. And this is based on Republican analysis and Democratic analysis, that they have been showing up at a higher rate in early voting, emphasis on early voting here, than they were in November, 2020.

So that's why today, you're hearing this from the Republicans.

So we don't have that sound available for you, but what Senator Purdue is saying at his home, as you were mentioning, because he came in contact with someone who is COVID-positive, is that he is anticipating that there is going to be a million people who show up on Election Day, and that the bulk of them will be Republican. That is his hope, that he is saying today. Senator Loeffler saying Republicans have all got to get out to the polls.

But here's the complication, Fred, is that not just Senator Purdue off the trail, but you have a president who is extremely unpredictable, focusing on January 6th on his political prospects. He even tweeted yesterday that Tuesday's election is illegal and invalid. So not exactly helpful for the Republicans who are trying to win control of the U.S. Senate. Fred?

WHITFIELD: Right, not helpful at all. And the president will be in Georgia on Monday. As far as we know, Senator Loeffler will be alongside him, and I wonder if he's wondering which Donald Trump is going to show up, too, the one who says don't vote or vote.

LAH: Hoping he'll stick to the teleprompter at least.

WHITFIELD: Kyung Lah, thank you so much, in Peachtree City, Georgia.

Stay with CNN for election night in America continued. Our special live coverage starts 4:00 on Tuesday.

And coming up in just a few moments, Reverend Raphael Warnock joins me to talk about the state of his campaign, all the attack ads, and his primary focus if he is elected to the U.S. Senate.

Also ahead, 20 million cases and counting, the United States breaks another coronavirus record as the nation's vaccine rollout falls short. We're live across the country.

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[14:15:58]

WHITFIELD: The New Year starting off with the pandemic surging to troubling new levels. 2020 ended with the deadliest month yet only to continue into 2021 with a sobering warning from health experts who fear that the worst is yet to come. The U.S. is now on the cusp of 348,000 deaths due to COVID and has surpassed 20 million cases. More than 125,000 people are beginning this year in the hospital.

Adding to the concern, that new variant of COVID-19 which experts say is transmitted much easier. First seen in the U.K., the strain has now been detected in California, Colorado, and Florida.

Meanwhile, the vaccine rollout continues to lag. More than 12 million doses delivered to states, but fewer than 3 million vaccinations have actually been administered, far fewer than the initial goal of 20 million by the end of December.

We have a team of correspondents covering all of these developments. Polo Sandoval is in New York for us, Paul Vercammen in California. Let's begin with Dianne Gallagher in Florida, where that state's vaccination plan for seniors has led to long lines, confusion, and frustration. And Dianne, where you have been, you said they ran out of doses. And so people are showing up, and they are leaving empty handed.

DIANNE GALLAGHER, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we don't even have the vaccine tables or the set-up here anymore, Fred, that we had a little bit earlier today with you. But there has been no shortage of cars that have been driving by, kind of asking us what's going on. I saw this in the newspaper, I saw this on TV. How come there aren't any vaccines for me? And that's really been the case for most of the afternoon.

Lake County, Florida, where we are, initially had said that today it was going to first come, first serve for the vaccines, but they really they just didn't simply have enough. So instead they were going to honor the number of appointments that were left, and then wait for their next shipment of vaccines, which they're expecting to come early next week to midweek to be able to start vaccinating people again.

Here in Florida, the governor is not necessarily adhering exactly to the CDC recommendations of vaccinating people over the age of 75, and those frontline essential workers in this second phase. Instead in Florida, they were doing over the age of 65, which is in part why we're seeing such a high demand.

They also have seen overflow. Some of the places are doing this first come, first serve, we're talking about lines with people camping out overnight just hoping to get a shot at this COVID-19 vaccine. Other counties like here in Lake County had attempted to do an appointment system, and, well, they simply got overrun. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOMMY CARPENTER, LAKE COUNTY, FLORIDA, EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER: In my professional career, I've never seen a call center take so many calls. And I understand concerns from residents in getting information, being able to, initially to schedule an appointment for immunizations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GALLAGHER: So look, phone lines crashed, websites crashed. The thing is, is that more vaccines are supposed to be on the way, so anybody who's over the age of 65 can get one here in Florida. Fred, it is safe to say there is no shortage as well, though, of interest or demand in this state. We have talked the a lot of people who say they simply want to get it done, get it over with, so they can move on and get that second dose in a couple weeks as well.

WHITFIELD: Right, and I wonder for a lot of people who came to the place where you are disappointed, then putting on the miles trying to find the next location where there might be doses left. All right, thanks so much, Dianne.

Polo, on to you now in New York, where the mayor of New York City is pushing an ambitious plan to vaccinate a million people in the city this month. How's he going to do that?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's quite the New Year's resolution that we heard from the mayor earlier this week, Fred, and that is, as you point out, to get as close to a million people vaccinated, at least as close as possible, by the end of January.

[14:20:01]

And the answer is they expect to have vaccine distribution centers in the long run. They also want to work with some of those community centers and some of those folks in the community to try to get, obviously, people, or at least increase confidence in the vaccine too among some of those that might have reservations about getting the vaccine. So the center of the city certainly going to be facing quite the logistical challenge.

It really is an example of what many parts around the country are facing as well. But here in New York City alone, I can give you some of the numbers. We have seen, according to city officials, about 100,000 vaccine doses delivered, or at least administered, that's out of 358,000 that have been allotted to the city of New York. So they're certainly at least 10 percent of the way there, but still have a long way to go.

Now, when it comes to actually statewide, we know that there have been roughly about 260,000 of the about 700,000 vaccines that have been delivered here to the state of New York. You do the math, that's roughly 32 percent. And believe it or not, that's actually overperforming compared to other states. I know that Florida also does have a fairly high percentage of the vaccinations that have been administered.

But look, you hear from officials across the country at the state level, and they are certainly calling on more assistance not just from the manufacturers like Pfizer and Moderna, but also the federal government. We have heard from multiple officials say that that is one of the challenges and one of the issues of trying to get as many shots as they can in people's arms is that they lack that federal guidance, that mandate across the board that would actually dictate who gets these and when.

And many officials at the state level believe that could potentially be the upper hand, because they do not don't want to be in a situation, Fred, with more hospitalizations, where you have more of these COVID doses being stored in freezers, medical freezers, than going into people's arms.

WHITFIELD: Right, nobody wants that. Thanks so much.

Paul Vercammen in California where crisis is pushing hospitals to the brink of catastrophe. What's the latest there? PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, a little bit of joy here at

this hospital. Why? Because the Army Corps of Engineers is coming here to do an assessment to look at the oxygen supply line. That is so critical to all of these COVID-19 patients who are literally gasping for breath.

The Army Corps has sent down this team, 12 individuals, many of them expert in hospitals and distribution and the make-up of these hospitals. They're going to go through six hospitals in all. They've already gone through three of them. They're going to first assess what they need in terms of this oxygen supply, and then they're going to make fixes. So there's a lot of celebration and reason for some enthusiasm there.

The big picture is just grim -- 21,000 Californians now hospitalized. It is taxing the system. Everything from the small clinic that can't provide care because it lost some nurses to those big hospitals whose ERs are just swarmed with patients, everything from gunshot victims to people in car wrecks. And then of course the COVID patients. It's frustrating chief medical officers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. BRAD SPELLBERG, CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER, L.A. COUNTY USC MEDICAL CENTER: If you're in a car accident, you're going to want us to save your life. If you have a heart attack or a stroke, you're going to want an ICU bed with trained ICU nurses and physicians who are not caring for 20 other patients at the same time.

This is about total collapse of the health care system if we have another spike. And we, in the hospital, cannot stop that. We can only react to it. It is the public that has the power to put a stop to the spread of the virus by obeying the basic public health guidances that have been put out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERCAMMEN: And clearly, this chief medical officer frustrated by people not paying attention to the social distancing and other rules. I think it's interesting to note that this is not some middle school biology student. This is the chief medical officer at the largest trauma center in the west, and he's urging people to stop having these anti-COVID hootenannies, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And we've seen a lot of pictures of gatherings of very large crowds, especially over the holiday weekend, pretty troubling. All right, Paul, Dianne, Polo, thanks to all of you, really appreciate it.

Still ahead, a crime involving the coronavirus vaccine, why a former pharmacist was arrested.

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[14:27:59] WHITFIELD: The crucial U.S. Senate runoff elections in Georgia are just three days away now, with two Senate seats up for grabs. The winner of these races could decide which party controls the U.S. Senate.

I'm joined now by one of the two Democratic candidates challenging the Republicans for those Senate seats, Reverend Raphael Warnock. He is the Democratic candidate facing off against Senator Kelly Loeffler. Reverend, good to see you.

REV. RAPHAEL WARNOCK (D), GEORGIA SENATORIAL CANDIDATE: Good to see you. Good to be with you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Fantastic. Before I ask you about the race, let me ask you about your reaction to this breaking news that at least a dozen Republican senators plan to vote to object to the certification of Joe Biden's win come Wednesday. What's your view on that?

WARNOCK: Well, we keep, and I feel like I sound like a broken record, but we keep reaching new lows. This is outrageous, and it's outrageous that the sitting unelected senator of Georgia, Kelly Loeffler, is not standing up for the voices of people in Georgia. We have a democratic system, and the most powerful four words in a democracy are, the people have spoken. They've spoken all across this country. They've spoken in swing states like Pennsylvania. They've spoken here in the state of Georgia.

And instead of standing up for the people and their voices, like these other dozen politicians, Kelly Loeffler's is focused on her own future rather than the future of the people who are trying to survive amidst this terrible pandemic.

WHITFIELD: It's been made clear that it's not likely that this challenging of the certification will change the outcome of the race. Joe Biden, Kamala Harris will still be sworn in. But it is potentially a big distraction. It could exhaust hours in the day, at least a Wednesday before certification is voted on.

WARNOCK: Oh, it's a huge distraction, and it is more of the same, the politics of distraction and division at a time when we can ill afford it.

[14:30:00]

This is the politics of the privileged, people who apparently are comfortable. But the folks that I know, the people who I encounter in my churches, in my church and across the community, they're wondering when are they going to see some real relief? The issues couldn't be more urgent, and even this week, we saw this back and forth regarding the $2,000 stimulus. Why don't they pass the stimulus package for ordinary people?

And no, this will not stand. Joe Biden is president-elect, and Kamala Harris is the vice president-elect, and Georgia deserves a United States senator who will be thinking about the people and their issues rather than their own best interests. WHITFIELD: And so Reverend, we're just three days away from perhaps

hearing what voters in Georgia have decided. And how are you feeling? Are you feeling confident? Are you concerned, ultimately, that perhaps turnout will be sizable on Election Day, particularly amongst the Republican electorate given that statistics are already showing that Democrats have turned out in early vote in very high numbers?

WARNOCK: I am feeling very encouraged by what's happening here on the ground in Georgia. We've had over 3 million people to vote already during the early period, and it is because they understand how much is at stake. My name is on the ballot, but they're not voting so much for me as much as they are voting for themselves and voting for their future.

People are concerned that for months they haven't seen COVID relief. They're concerned that that they might lose their health care in the middle of a pandemic. We have 1.8 million Georgians with preexisting conditions. Kelly Loeffler seems to think it's all right to get rid of people's health care. I think that health care is a human right.

And so as we witness this massive turnout, we're grateful, but our message is we need people to show up on Tuesday. It's not over until it's over. And so tell everybody you know to vote. And if you have a question about where to vote, how to vote, go to VoteWarnock.com. But we must stand up in this defining moment in American history. The people are the only ones who can correct the dysfunction that we're witnessing right now in Washington, D.C.

WHITFIELD: These have been very aggressive races. We're looking at something like $500 million plus in television ad spending involving all of the campaigns. There has been a clear distinction in the styles. And you have been the target of a lot of negative campaigning involving taking some of your own words and sermons out of context, which means you've had to spend a lot of time explaining your intent, your focus. Do you believe that has cost you votes?

WARNOCK: Listen, I'm very clear that this is not about me. I have committed my whole life to service. I have been focused on the people that I see at my church and across the community, folks who are wondering why what's going on in Washington doesn't work for them. And so I'm not concerned about Kelly Loeffler. She can call me whatever she wants. And many of the same names that she has been calling me, they called my heroes by those names, Martin Luther King Jr., and the folks that I got to know right in Atlanta who work alongside, C.T. Vivian, John Lewis, Andrew Young.

And so I'm going to be focused on the fact that people need health care. They need COVID-19 relief. I think it's interesting that Kelly Loeffler has been in the Senate for 10 months, and she hasn't even bothered to make a case for why the people of Georgia should elect her. She was appointed. It's clear the people of Georgia are disappointed, and she's sounding more and more desperate every day in her rhetoric because she's focused on herself.

And so here's the clear choice of people in Georgia. You can help her to help herself or you can help me to help you. And I'm deeply honored that this kid who grew up in public housing, one of 12 children in my family, is now running for the U.S. Senate against the wealthiest member of congress. It means that the American dream and promise is very much alive. It's just slipping away from too many people. And I hope to go to the Senate to stand up for ordinary people.

WHITFIELD: I wonder what this has been like for you personally. You're a man of law, and how the expectations would be that you are using words to describe even your opponents or dissenters using uplifting words. I wonder if this has been very difficult, a little prickly for you, to have to respond to your critics, some of whom, Senator Loeffler, who have called you a radical liberal, have accused you of trying to push an agenda that would be called socialism.

[14:35:18]

Has this been difficult for you to respond to the criticism, but at the same time, try to defer from using ugly language against your opponents?

WARNOCK: I think that the American people and the people of Georgia have had enough with the kind of negative politics. They've had enough of the politics of division and distraction and distortion. And one thing that I was very clear about when I got in this race is that it was not going to change who I am at my core.

I am a Matthew 25 Christian. I believe the words of Jesus when he said that they will come before the master and he will say, I was hungry and you fed me. I was thirsty, you gave me something to drink. I was sick, I was in prison, and you came to visit me. And someone asked, when where were you hungry?

When where were you thirsty? When where were you naked? When were you a stranger, Lord? When you were you in prison or sick? He said inasmuch as you have done unto the least of these, you've done it also unto me.

That is the values, those are the principles that guide me in my work, and it is that kind of sensibility that I hope to bring to the United States Senate. I've had the honor of being the pastor to John Lewis. John Lewis was the conscience of the congress. He went to Congress late in life, but Congress didn't shape him.

He brought the same commitment that he had taken in the civil rights movement, the same courage that took him across the Edmund Pettus Bridge. He brought that into the great debates in the Congress. If the Congress needed someone to speak to its conscience, I think the Senate needs someone to speak to the soul.

And so I'm not going to be dragged down into the mud. Martin Luther King Sr. said no one can drag me so low as to hate them. And so I will continue to put the people at the center of the conversation. The people that I'm running into, I was in Cuthbert, Georgia, a few weeks ago.

Those folks are worried because their hospital just closed in the middle of a pandemic. And too often today, the politics have become about the politicians. We have a generation of professional politicians who are so focused on the next election that they're not focused on the next generation. I think the people of Georgia deserve someone who will be thinking about them.

WHITFIELD: It sounds like you're saying, even though you've led Ebenezer church for some 15 years, even if you are elected senator, you leave the church but the church doesn't leave you. I wonder if you can give me a perspective, too, on what has become a very unique campaign. You drive around Georgia and you see campaign signs with both your name and that of Jon Ossoff, as if you were running as a pair.

Separate offices, but it's clear the pair of you winning changes the balance of power in the U.S. Senate. So what has that dynamic been like that the two of you, you two Democrats, have been campaigning together, crossing paths, both benefitting from even heavy hitters the likes of Barack Obama?

WARNOCK: Jon Ossoff is my brother, and I am deeply honored to be running alongside him. And when you think about the arc of history in our country, particularly in the American south, I think the fact that the two of us are running alongside one another in this defining moment is itself a message.

You have a Jewish young man, the son of an immigrant who was mentored by John Lewis and a pastor, the pastor of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Ebenezer Baptist Church who grew up in public housing, running alongside each other in this moment in which we're dealing with the renewed reckoning around race in light of the large flash points of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others, in this moment in which we're faced with a pandemic that is tragic, but it also unearths long standing disparities in health care and in economics.

And you have the two of us running alongside each other, I think that this is a representation of the new south. It is more open. It is inclusive. It is forward-looking. And it is embracing of a future that seeks to provide the best for all of our children.

[14:40:07]

WHITFIELD: Well, all eyes on Georgia, Reverend Raphael Warnock. Thank you so much. Of course, we'll find out come Tuesday if you have made a winning case to Georgians.

WARNOCK: Thank you so much. Happy New Year.

WHITFIELD: Happy New Year to you as well.

And of course, we have reached out to all four Senate campaigns, and both Republican Senators Loeffler and Perdue have declined to join us for an interview or to provide a surrogate to speak on their behalf.

All right, coming up next, the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine drastically behind schedule in the United States, and that's not all. There have also been dangerous and costly mistakes. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The U.S. is kicking off 2021 having to play catch-up on coronavirus vaccinations. The federal government's Operation Warp Speed had pledged to administer 20 million doses before year's end, but the latest CDC data shows that less than 3 million Americans have been vaccinated so far.

Joining me right now to discuss, Dr. Jayne Morgan, the clinical director of the Piedmont Healthcare System's COVID task force in Atlanta. Dr. Morgan, she's also the mother of CNN's Omar Jimenez. Dr. Morgan, good to see you again.

DR. JAYNE MORGAN, CLINICAL DIRECTOR, PIEDMONT HEALTHCARE COVID TASK FORCE: Hi, Fredricka. Nice to see you as well.

WHITFIELD: So I understand that you have an appointment to receive your first dose of the coronavirus vaccine. Was that today or is that upcoming?

MORGAN: That is today. This is today.

WHITFIELD: OK, how are you feeling?

(LAUGHTER)

MORGAN: I'm great, and I'm looking forward to it, actually. I wish I had been a little bit earlier in the line, but today is the day and I'm grateful for that.

WHITFIELD: Was there ever any trepidation?

MORGAN: No, none whatsoever. And I think part of that is because I've been so intricately involved in understanding the process.

[14:45:00]

And I think part of that is the messaging that needs to get out, really, to all people, not just the minority communities, but many people have some trepidation with regard to the vaccine because of how quickly it was developed, including in the health care spectrum. So we need to work to get that messaging out and to get that information out regarding what this vaccine development really entailed and why it's safe.

WHITFIELD: And that's trepidation really is not just among the populous. I heard today from Dr. Ranney, a medical analyst who was on with me earlier today, who said there has been some trepidation even among the medical community, and how that's a very tough message that's being sent when you've got some on the front line, I don't know what their positions are, but in the medical community who say, no, I'm not comfortable yet. Why do you suppose that is?

MORGAN: Right, and so I think there's a lot of concern with what appears to be the rapidity with which the vaccines have been developed. But when we look at this, and we think about this scientifically, the SARS virus, the Severe Acute Respiratory System virus, was first introduced to us in 2003.

This virus, the SARS-CoV-2 virus syndrome, or the Severe Acute Respiratory System Coronavirus 2, so named because 70 percent of the sequence is analogous to what we see in the SARS virus. So we have had 17 years to understand this virus. We first began research on this in 2003. In 2020 when we first saw the first case of COVID-19 on our shores, we already had 17 years of experience.

All of the preclinical data had been done. All of the bench work had been done. The entire genomic sequence had been analyzed and identified, all 30,000 base pairs. That is the point at which we started the development of the vaccine. And so I think that this behind-the-scenes work is not just seeing that the virus appeared and suddenly we had a vaccine.

WHITFIELD: Right, and I've heard that from a lot of other doctors and scientists who say, we didn't just come up with this. This vaccine, or at least the precursor to the vaccine going through human trials didn't just happen this year. But getting the message out is pretty vital in changing the minds of a lot of people. How do you suppose reassurances should be made to those who are so hesitant that while the vaccine may be new this year, the development of it didn't all happen in one year?

MORGAN: Yes, absolutely. We need voices that are trusted and knowledged in the communities, in all of our communities to begin to speak to everyone, including communities that are black and brown. People who can speak with some cultural congruence and historical context. And actually, we're behind the eight-ball. That messaging should have been ahead of the vaccine rollout, such that we are now not trying to work backwards and understand the vaccine hesitancy and the trepidation and what that entails. And so there -- I'm sorry, go ahead.

WHITFIELD: No, you go ahead.

MORGAN: So I was just going to continue to say, when we look at the development, also the phase one, phase two, and phase three parts of the development of the vaccine, those were also done in an overlapping fashion, looking at interim analysis data, which, again, accelerated the process that made it possible for us to develop this vaccine within a pandemic. And it's why there's not FDA approval with emergency use authorization, because there's understanding that there's still data that needs to come in, but the data that is available looks very, very promising.

WHITFIELD: All right, Dr. Jayne Morgan, thanks so much to you, and good luck today.

MORGAN: Thank you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And your first dose of this two-part vaccination.

MORGAN: My first dose.

WHITFIELD: That's right. We'll talk to you again hopefully when you get that second dose. We'd love to know how you feel.

MORGAN: I would love to talk to you. All right, bye.

WHITFIELD: Take care. Happy New Year.

Coming up, the Vatican rolls out its coronavirus vaccine plan. We'll go there live in just a moment.

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[14:54:00]

WHITFIELD: Concerns of the COVID-19 pandemic have not gone lost on the Pope and the residents of Vatican City. The Pope used his Christmas message to call on countries to share COVID-19 vaccines. And now the Vatican is rolling out its vaccination plan. Joining me live from Rome is CNN senior Vatican analyst John Allen. John, happy New Year to you. How soon will residents of Vatican City be getting a COVID-19 vaccine?

JOHN ALLEN, CNN SENIOR VATICAN ANALYST: Hi there, Fredricka. I hope you had a wonderful New Year's. I know mine is happier knowing that you're still going to be bringing the news to us. So good on you.

(LAUGHTER)

ALLEN: Yes. So just before Christmas, the Vatican endorsed the morality of taking the COVID-19 vaccine, and now it has presented its own vaccination plan. As you can see in the graphic we have prepared, the Vatican announced today that it will begin vaccinating its personnel later this month, in the second part of January.

[14:55:00]

It's going to begin with its own health care staff and also its police and security staff. After that, it will be people who have contact with the public, and also the elderly in the Vatican. Remember there are a lot of elderly cardinals and monsignori here who are going to be vaccinated. And they will be using the Pfizer vaccine. We know that the Vatican has acquired an ultra-low refrigerator, because remember that Pfizer vaccine has to be stored at very low temperatures.

And the Vatican also said today that it is acquiring sufficient doses to cover all of its needs. What we don't yet have, Fredricka, is any official word on whether Pope Francis or, for that matter, retired Pope Benedict the 16th will be getting the vaccine. That is a question the Vatican regards as involving the Pope's private life. Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: That's very fascinating. If anyone is going to find out, it would be you, John Allen. Happy New Year to you.

ALLEN: Thank you, Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: We're all hoping and praying for a better 2021.

And this is how thousands in France rang in the New Year. Despite the country facing a surge in the virus, more than 2,500 people attended an illegal rave, ignoring local restrictions and a nationwide curfew. Police say they were met with violent hostility when they tried to break up the party. This comes as France is extending its curfew for some of the hardest hit regions.

Thank you so much for joining me today. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The CNN NEWSROOM continues with Ana Cabrera in a moment.

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