Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Four Dead After Trump Incites Riot At U.S. Capitol; DC Police: 68 People Arrested Yesterday, Only One Was Local; Trump Vows Orderly Transition After Mob Siege Of U.S. Capitol; Bill Barr: Trump's Conduct Was A "Betrayal Of His Office And Supporters"; Mitt Romney: Senators Who Object To Results "Complicit" In Attacking Democracy. Aired 12- 12:30p ET

Aired January 07, 2021 - 12:00   ET

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

[12:00:00]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: --how the city is preparing for the inauguration?

MAYOR MURIEL BOWSER, (D) DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA: I can't speak to you with any specifics at this stage, Michael. But we will be looking very closely at what we learned, what's happening at the Capitol working with congressional leadership and the presidential inauguration committee.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, thank you. And then--

BOWSER: Well, you did hear the secretary offer two very important points already, that the fencing that is going up around the Capitol, non-scalable fencing will be in place through the inauguration and the guard strength that will be coming on the ground by this weekend, up to 6200 will be available through the inauguration as well.

RYAN MCCARTHY, ARMY SECRETARY: Which is a larger composition of personnel than you would have for a standard inauguration.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you and just one follow-up there for you, Secretary McCarthy. The back fencing, you said at least 30 days or no more than 30 days that will be erected?

MCCARTHY: At a minimum.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At a minimum, OK, thank you.

MCCARTHY: Yes. And we will work that in coordination with the city as well as the Capitol Hill police.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Mark.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: --Washington. Two questions for the secretary. One and I tried to follow along. Could you repeat the specifics about the fence? Will it completely surround the U.S. Capitol complex, the fencing?

MCCARTHY: Yes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Could you go repeat the specifics one more time?

MCCARTHY: Yes, so constitution to independence, first, and then the road there in front by the pond, that'll be all the way around.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And how high will that be?

MCCARTHY: Seven foot.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Seven feet, nonscalable. Compare that to what we see at the White House.

MCCARTHY: This is what was available. We worked through this solution midstream yesterday. And we were on the phones to get as quickly as possible a capability in place to extend the perimeter of the National Capitol Complex, we could get as many metropolitan police officers out into the streets so that in the event that if this was to recur again or downstream, the Chief Contee would have as much flexibility with his police force as possible, and we could take over the static security positions.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I appreciate it may not been your decision and we know it certainly Chief in - it wasn't their decision. But what can you tell us about the lack of preparation prior to yesterday on that part of the U.S. Capitol police and why in months prior we saw troops surrounding the U.S. Capitol when other protesters were coming but yesterday we didn't see anything?

Why were there no troops or any other backup security there yesterday given what we all knew in the public domain, you must have had better intelligence than we did, but we all knew that this was possible if not likely?

MCCARTHY: We rely on our intelligence from law enforcement and local police obviously but with respect to the pre-coordination to the Mayor's point; those things are all being looked at. There were discussions previously with the Capitol police and others, and no requests of the D.C. National Guard were made. Obviously it is different branch of government, so we have to be requested to come onto the grounds.

BOWSER: Yes.

JOHN KING, CNN HOST, INSIDE POLITICS: I am John King in Washington. Welcome to viewers in the United States and around the world. You have been listening to quite a sober update from the Mayor of Washington, D.C., Muriel Bowser and her police, law enforcement, and security team are reacting to the horrific events that played out here in the Nation's Capitol.

The Capitol of the United States yesterday when supporters of President Trump staged an insurrection at the United States Capitol. Four people dead because of that one woman shot, three others dying on the capitol grounds. At that briefing just now, the Mayor making clear number one, that while she regrets what happened yesterday, the Capitol is the purview of the Capitol police and federal authorities, not the city authorities.

But she says the city now working with those federal authorities on extraordinary new security measures, including a seven foot fence, completely surrounding the United States Capitol as we prepare now for the inauguration of Joe Biden as the President of the United States in just 13 days.

It is a momentous day here in the Capitol, it was a violent day yesterday, a consequential day and the world is watching. Just moments ago, the Senate's top Democrat said the President of the United States should be removed from office now even though there are just 13 days left in the Trump term.

Chuck Schumer saying the president's cabinet should do that, they should convene, and declare him unfit and if they will not do that, that the congress should consider again impeaching and removing the president from office.

Let's begin with the security concerns in the Capitol today and the investigation into what happened yesterday? Our Justice Correspondent Evan Perez joins us now. Evan you hear the concerns there voiced by the D.C. Mayor.

Number one, she's trying to say this is not my fault, but we're going to help now to try to make the city and those buildings a more secure place. There is a mood in the Capitol today, number one, what went wrong? How the hell did that happen at what is supposed to be one of the most secure places in the United States of America? And then number two, who will be brought to justice and how quickly?

[12:05:00]

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SENIOR JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes John, look, I think there's a lot of embarrassment about what happened yesterday? And I'll tell you, you can see everyone on social media is commenting on the fact that there was a stark difference between what you saw - the posture you saw from the police at the Capitol during the summer, during the Black Lives Matter protests, the protests following the killing of George Floyd.

Or even for instance during the hearings for Amy Coney Barrett compared to what you saw yesterday where people were just outnumbered. The police were just outnumbered and overrun fairly quickly by these mobs - some of whom had posted on social media ahead of time that this is what they intended to do.

So the questions are going to be asked of the members of congress who oversee the Capitol Police as the Mayor pointed out during that press conference, that's the jurisdiction of the congress, that is separate from even the agencies that were reporting to the attorney general, the Acting Attorney General, Jeff Rosen, who was coordinating all the federal response. His agencies, the FBI, the ATF, they all were nearby. They had their

emergency response teams there, their hostage rescue teams, they had them nearby, but they did not go there until they were asked by the Capitol police. By the time that request came in, it was too late.

And so that's why you saw members of congress had to be rescued, had to be taken into secret locations to be hidden from the mobs and in the end removed from the Capitol while the bomb squads came in and cleared the building for several hours.

Obviously the fact that you had a police shooting of a woman who was trying to go through a window, that's now under investigation as well but there's a lot of questions that are still to be asked about exactly why more wasn't done before the events of yesterday?

KING: Evan Perez joining us from the Justice Department, grateful for that reporting and insights. There are a lot of questions about law enforcement, and a lot of questions about security, lot of questions about who is responsible here, and a lot of questions about what to do now?

Joining me to share the reporting and their insights on that CNN White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins, CNN's Manu Raju upon Capitol Hill and CNN's Dana Bash, Kaitlan Collins, I want to start with you at the White House because, I will get to Manu on this point in a minute and Dana.

Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat, he will be the majority leader in just days here in the United States Senate. Just moments ago, saying the president has to go, even though there are only 13 days left in his term that yesterday proves to him Chuck Schumer and other Democrats, that he is unfit for office.

We know that the president finally this morning and I was supposed to call this progress, even though this statement was still full of lies about the election. The president did promised a peaceful transition of power but we know from your reporting and your colleagues at the White House.

That was not done to congratulate Joe Biden that was done to try to stop conversations among his own aides about whether the cabinet should convene, declare this president unfit and remove him from office. Where are we in those conversations?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I think those conversations are still happening. I don't think that they're going to go anywhere based on the latest that we've heard. These things are changing pretty quickly so that still remains to be seen.

But I think that statement was also put out by the president overnight after congress has certified Biden's win because he wanted to stave off potential mass resignations coming from members of his cabinet and senior national security officials that we reported yesterday were considering resigning.

And so I think the president realized that, as he was incredibly isolated yesterday because so many people who have been the president's allies through thick and thin and defended him until the last breath came out against him yesterday in a really remarkable way that we have not seen since he took office.

And so I think that is what led to the statement we got around 4:00 am this morning, notice the timing of when the white House sent that out. And of course it was something that the president couldn't even tweet out because he was suspended from Twitter because of what he had been saying about what we had been seeing on Capitol Hill yesterday.

So I think things are fluid. I think these conversations are still happening. We could still see more resignations coming today. And I think people in the White House are just keeping their distance from the president which is remarkable on his last days in office.

KING: Right. And to echo the point you just made, the President of the United States right now can declare war. He cannot tweet, he cannot post on Facebook. That is the world we live in, in the final 13 days of the Trump Presidency.

Manu Raju to you up on the Hill look, this is a delicate moment for Chuck Schumer, he is the Minority Leader, he will in days be the Majority Leader of the United States Senate, in making this declaration today, the president must go.

If Kaitlan is right, and forces in the Trump Administration despite their anger and frustration do not muster the quorum if you will to call the cabinet together are the Democrats serious? The House would have to go first. Are they serious about trying to again impeach the president with 13 days left or they just sending a message?

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think they're sending a message. Going through the impeachment process is a very cumbersome process, it takes time, you have to build a case, you have to have hearings, presumably you could fast track that but I don't see that happening.

[12:10:00]

RAJU: I think what Chuck Schumer is trying to do is send a message very clearly to his Republican colleagues in particular that there needs to be more pressure on President Trump in his last 13 days in office especially if more demonstrations happen. If you refuse to leave office, if he is planning something for January 20th, inauguration day, that Republicans should stand up to the possibility of him fomenting more unrest.

That's really what Chuck Schumer is trying to do, making that clear for Republicans to join him in those calls to pressure the president to back off. And we haven't seen Republicans other than today Adam Kinzinger a Republican from Illinois, who has emerged as a leading Trump critic in the aftermath of the elections putting out a video today becoming the first Republican on Capitol Hill to call to invoke the 25th amendment.

No other Republican is even close to there yet. Even Mitt Romney, who is a critic of Donald Trump of course, voted to remove him from office has not embraced the calls for the 25th amendment. So we are seeing a partisan push for this will become bipartisan potentially depending on what the president John does here in last few days here.

KING: Dana Bash coming on that point. Our Chief Political Correspondent is a veteran of both the White House and Capitol Hill. Every day we're in a place we have never been before. Yesterday, we were in a dangerous place we have never been before, an attack on the United States Capitol.

11 years ago Americans gave their lives to stop a plane from destroying that building. And yesterday the President of the United States encouraged people to attack that building. It is numbing and if you get a little choked up about it when you think about it today, where are we?

He is isolated, he is angry, he is unpredictable, he is still the President of the United States and he has considerable power. People around him are worried. His vice president is angry, took a long time to get there, but he is angry. On our Capitol Hill you hear this.

Adam Kinzinger, that's not insignificant a Republican calling on - a Republican and a Veteran calling on his colleagues in the administration to get together and kick this president out. Is this frustration, is it venting, is that the whole of yesterday or will it bring us anywhere?

DANA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: It's all of the above and the last point is TBD, will it bring us anywhere. If we were in a different time chronologically, if it wasn't 12 days before he was going to be gone anyway perhaps, perhaps it would be a different situation, but we're not.

And there are so many factors that make what Kaitlan was talking about real, which is that at this point it doesn't look like it's going to get there. And by there, I mean the 25th amendment, invoking it, actually kicking him out of office.

But anything could change that because tensions are so high, frustration, anger at the president is so high and you have seen that across the board. It has been spilling out and we cannot forget that.

For everything that we saw in the Capitol, you said yes, I am a veteran of two decades covering congress and also covering the White House. But even being somebody who has walked those halls so many times it doesn't prepare you for trying to read the tea leaves on something like this because it is unprecedented. It is all new.

The law enforcement, the breach, all of that is one important question but the most important question now is the cope ability of the President of the United States and the fact that he went to that rally and called for an incited violence. Maybe he didn't realize he was doing it, maybe he did, but he did it.

KING: He doesn't get that. I'm sorry. In the first week of the Trump Presidency, maybe a guy who never held office, he doesn't realize what he is saying. That's over.

BASH: He did it and that's all the matter.

KING: That's long over. He has been president four years, he's supported conspiracy theorists, has lied repeatedly. He is lying repeatedly still about the election. And to that point, Kaitlan Collins, the world is watching. Vladimir Putin's Kremlin being the loudest among our force around the world laughing at the United States right now because of what happened yesterday.

The question is will anyone inside the administration do anything? His former Chief of Staff, John Kelly, issuing a skating statement, his Former Attorney General Bill Barr saying this to "The Associated Press" this is a statement to CNN now orchestrating a mob to pressure congress is inexcusable.

The president's conduct yesterday was a betrayal of his office and his supporters. We've seen the national security adviser publicly side with Mike Pence, not the President of the United States yesterday. All of them are saying damning things, but is it to protect their own reputations in these final days or again are they willing to step up and do anything about it?

COLLINS: No, I think these are their real thoughts. I think typically when they were probably in their positions the John Kelly's, the Bill Barr's, they did not say things like that publicly but I think it can be two things at once. They're also trying to salvage their reputations given that they did work for President Trump and the way he responded to yesterday.

[12:15:00]

COLLINS: But I also think that yesterday was a breaking point for a lot of people. And it did genuinely unsettle so many people who have worked for the president or who currently do work for him based on our conversations.

So for Bill Barr to come out, and that, that was a betrayal of the president's office, that's an incredibly weighty statement, given just how close he was to the president and it's only been a few weeks since he left that job.

I think that we're watching now is to see what happens among the people who are still here. The Secretary of Pompeo, the National Security Adviser Robert O'Brien, the Director of National Intelligence John Radcliffe they're all getting calls from well known former national security officials and people who work at these major national security firms urging them not to resign because they realize and recognize that, that pressure is there, that people are genuinely considering this.

But hey say that basically if they did it would leave this an absence there. And the concern is that, this political crisis that you saw play out yesterday could morph into a national security one that some foreign adversary could try to take advantage of. And so, it's all of those things being weighed I think as people are

genuinely, openly and not denying that they're considering resigning which is a really remarkable point that we've gotten to in the last few days.

KING: And so Manu, what is the mood among Republicans up there? You mentioned Kinzinger or Adam Kinzinger a House member who has been a critic of the president for some time. But who had the courage to step up and say you must go in these final days.

Mitch McConnell who was enabled much of this Trump Presidency refused to talk about the tweets, brushed them off says oh don't take him literally when they include support for QAnon and thinks like that.

He took a very hard turn against the president yesterday saying we are going to ratify Joe Biden's election. After the horror sometimes it takes time as Dana noted to sort of shake off what happened yesterday the personal horror, the fear this could have turned out much more painful and bloody than it did. What is the mood among senior Republicans as they watch the White House?

RAJU: They're done with the president. Talking to senior Republican Senators even junior Republican Senators rank and file members what happened yesterday where as Kaitlan mentioned was a breaking point for these members as well not just the violence that occurred that was stoked by the president and his words and the lies that he has been saying about the election but also the fact that they just lost the Senate majority.

This was something that the Republicans thought that they could certainly hold onto in a state that leans Republican. Georgia, but losing two Senate seats on Tuesday was really just the end of the road for most of these Republicans who blame this squarely on Trump himself the things he has done the lies he said about the election, ultimately costing them the race and the majority for the next two years. John?

KING: Yes, as you do, add in this, too, because I wasn't going to sneak this in before we go even though we are tight on time. Does he realize? You talk to people of course the president all the time. Does he realize the indelible stain on his legacy it is to incite people to attack one of the greatest monuments of American democracy?

BASH: That's what I was going to mention. No, no. Right now what I am hearing is that the president is still on a rampage. He is isolated. He is not taking calls from people. He is talking about trying to find retribution against people who have been loyal to him who is now speaking out to him because they're finally doing even at the 11th hour the right thing.

And that is why when we talk about the 25th amendment maybe not happening right now that could change in a matter of hours because the president is not showing any remorse privately, just the opposite. He is getting more and more agitated.

KING: And his latest statement which he can clean up at any moment calls the people who attack that building you see it behind me in that image behind me, great patriots. That's what the President of the United States calls them, great patriots.

Thank you all. Dana Bash, Manu Raju and Kaitlan Collins very important reporting and insights and we will continue to ask our sources about more and we continue the conversation. Next, Republicans lose the Senate and they fight now over the best path to take now that President Trump is leaving.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:20:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): What happened here today was an insurrection, incited by the President of the United States. Those who choose to continue to support his dangerous gambit by objecting to the results of a legitimate democratic election will forever be seen as being complicit in an unprecedented attack against our democracy. Fairly or not, they'll be remembered for their role in the shameful episode in American history that will be their legacy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Republican Senator Mitt Romney last night planting his flag in a defining debate now for the Republican Party. What role does President Trump get to play especially after yesterday's horror at the United States capitol? That insurrection came on a day Republicans also learned they are losing their Senate majority which will also now be a flashpoint as the GOP prepares for a Biden, a democratic presidency.

Mike Rogers is a Former Republican Congressman from Michigan he is also the Former Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Mr. Chairman, grateful for your time today. Let me start by asking you to wear your Republican hat. I am going to get to an intelligence question in a minute.

But what does the party do now and how much is it complicated when you are in the minority in both chambers now? You hear Senator Romney there, Senator from Utah for Massachusetts Governor but originally a son of Michigan your state there where his dad was Governor. You hear Senator Romney saying wake up, Republicans.

This president is toxic. We must break from him, and we must go back to who we were before him. But you also hear listen to some of the debate last night about challenging the election results, voices like this.

[12:25:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): I hope that this body will not miss the opportunity to take affirmative action to address the concerns of so many millions of Americans. We do need an investigation into irregularities, fraud. REP. MIKE KELLY (R-PA): We have driven this country apart through the

people's house and we wonder what happens? The biggest loss on November 3rd was not by Donald Trump, it was the faith and trust of the American people lost in this voting system.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: What are your thoughts on that tug of war those who say whatever Trump wants we will do and those who say let's get the hell out off from under his shadow?

MIKE ROGERS, (R) FORMER HOUSE INTELLIGENCE CHAIRMAN: Well, I think yesterday broke the spell that so many people had about Donald Trump. Clearly his actions led to that - there's no great way to describe what happened yesterday, sedition. I mean, there were acts of domestic terrorism actually happened on the day the two pipe bombs, one at the RNC, one at the DNC.

The fact that people showed up with Molotov cocktails, there was something else going on there that was clearly designed to upset and attack American democracy. And so, being any way and shape a part of that has to end number one. So I think there was good news, putting on a Republican hat on in this last election.

I think we lost the Georgia two Republican Senate seats because of Donald Trump and his chaotic leadership style and his pouting and his kicking and screaming about the fact that he lost. Facts are stubborn things.

And so, it's hard to continue to maintain that and as a matter of fact, one of the members actually used polling that Americans didn't believe that it was fair that's absolutely the wrong standard to use.

KING: Well let me jump in Mike, I'm sorry. But let me jump in, because you're talking about what standard to use. The number two House Republican Steve Scalise went to the floor talking about fraud in these democrat states.

And at the moment Arizona's challenge is on the floor. Arizona has a Republican Governor and a Republican legislature, they were going to challenge, and they backed off Georgia, Republican Governor, and Republican legislature.

They did challenge Pennsylvania, yes Democratic Governor, but Republican legislature and all of these were thrown out in the court. Will Republicans go back to fact as opposed to Trump fantasies?

ROGERS: Well, I think what you saw happen in the last few days are the final wakeup here. And I hope the media picks it up. This is not the Republican Party that is not the Republican Party, the folks that were breaking windows, and crawling in to disrupt a free and democratic process. Those aren't Republicans.

And I would reject the fact that they would call themselves Republicans. So my point of this is, on that is yes, I think so. Yes, are we going to have some tensions in the Republican Party in the next few months if not year, if not two years, I think we are.

It will be healthy because we can get back to who we are because the unprecedented number of people who voted for Donald Trump. And listen, I talked to a lot of them, I happened to be in Michigan today talking to real people doing real things and manufacturers.

And I'll tell you what they're saying is they voted for Trump, as they thought that help their businesses but they surely didn't like him, and they didn't like his direction and they didn't like the chaos of it. Those are Republicans who will continue to be Republicans and I think circle around a better message for Republicans.

Listen, we increased our number of women. We increased our minority vote in this last election. And again, that wasn't because of Donald Trump that was because of the policies of Republicans is that much different than what the left is doing on the Democrat side of the party ledger?

All is we need to do now is get our act together be that strong more force for fact-finding party that presents an alternative for a free and open America where everyone has an opportunity and we're going to get it back. We didn't get killed in the suburbs like we thought.

So as I say, I put my Republican hat on. I thought we did pretty well in this election because they're republican ideas which I think are the most important things in politics were not rejected. Donald Trump was rejected and I see you look at yesterday and you can understand exactly why? And he's done that spell is broken.

I talked to people who in Michigan today who voted for Donald Trump who are angry and upset and embarrassed and that says it all in politics. And so, that's the group that's going to help rebuild the Republican brand and image, and who we are, and then outreach to minorities, a better outreach to women, all of that I think is going to happen.

And remember John, right after Obama got elected the first time the Republicans got decimated and everyone said up you're done you're never going to be a national party again. These things are cyclical. And so, if we try to huddle around the Trump supporters you saw yesterday we will lose every election. If we go back to our roots we will win elections in the future.