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President Trump is Outraged by the Heinous Attack on U.S. Capitol; Dozens of Lawmakers are Calling for Trump's Removal from Office; Criminal Charges Filed Against Suspects in Capitol Unrest; CNN Tracks Global Coronavirus Cases; Israel is aiming for a total national vaccination within three months; Biden Slams Trump for Inciting Mob to Attack; U.S. Education, Transportation Secretaries Resign; U.S. Allies Express Shock, Dismay After Pro-Trump Riot; CDC: 50 percent Of Transmission Comes From Asymptomatic People; U.S. Vaccine Rollout Plugging Along, But Still Far Behind; California, Coronavirus Pandemic: Three Straight Days Of Record Death Tolls In U.S.; Dramatic Images From Capitol As Rioters Chanted "Our House!"; The Trump Presidency In Turmoil. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired January 08, 2021 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): Thanks for staying with us, everybody. You're watching the third hour of "CNN Newsroom" with me, John Vause.

Coming up, prosecutors want everyone involved in the attack of the U.S. Capitol be investigated, including Donald Trump, and allegations of inciting violence.

Twenty-four hours later, though, a very different message from the U.S. president, calling for calm and orderly transition to the new administration, at the same time asking senior aides and lawyers if he can pardon himself.

And 12 days left (INAUDIBLE) too long, some Republicans and Democrats are demanding Trump to be removed from office and remove now.

We begin this hour at the White House where a defeated and deflated Donald Trump has posted a new video on Twitter, this time claiming he is actually outraged by what he described as a heinous attack on the U.S. Capitol. And for the first time, he conceded publicly that he will not serve a second term. The White House adviser says the president recorded the video because of looming resignations and potential impeachment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Like all Americans, I am outraged by the violence, lawlessness, and mayhem. Tempers must be cooled and calm restored.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE (on camera): Well, now, on the president's Twitter message, from CNN's Kaitlan Collins, reporting from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: This was the first time that we've seen the president come out on camera and say that there is going to be a peaceful transition of power when Joe Biden takes office. Even if he did not mention Joe Biden by name, this is the first time we've seen this kind of language from the president.

It's basically a non-concession speech. Probably as good as we are going to get from Donald Trump. But, of course, it comes after he spent the day listening to these calls coming from Capitol Hill, and not just from Democrats, for his removal from office and his waning days of his administration, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who is calling on the vice president, Mike Pence, to invoke the 25th Amendment, calling on the cabinet, singling out some of the cabinet secretaries by name.

We should note that we have spoken to the vice president's office. They have not responded to what the vice president plans to do. But an administration official did say he has not discussed invoking the 25th Amendment with any of the cabinet members.

However, those cabinet members are dwindling. We are now seeing at least two of them resigned in the wake of the president's response to that. That is Elaine Chao, the transportation secretary, who, of course, is also married to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, but also the education secretary, Betsy DeVos, who submitted her resignation letter late last night and was talking of the accomplishments of the Trump administration, but did say at one point that this is what we should be talking about.

Quote -- "There is no mistaking the impact your rhetoric had on the situation, and it is the inflection point for me," saying that was the final straw for her and that is what is leading her to leave her job with just two weeks left in the Trump administration.

And, of course, the big question right now is whether or not there are going to be more of them.

Kaitlan Collins, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE (on camera): He has been in office for 1,449 days. Now, only now, some Republicans are starting to speak with Democrats to try to force Trump from office before his term ends 12 days from now.

Manu Raju is in Capitol Hill.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Extraordinary moves under discussion on Capitol Hill to try to make Donald Trump the first president in American history who could get impeached twice.

Now, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is seriously considering bringing an impeachment vote to the floor quickly, much quicker than the 2019 impeachment of Donald Trump that took several months to play out, as typically it happens.

But now, they are looking at bypassing the committees altogether, bringing a quick vote to the floor and getting it done in just a matter of days.

Now, there is still some time this needs to play out. They have not made any final decisions if that's the way they're going to proceed. It's still uncertain what Joe Biden wants to do.

And on top of that, the first thing the Democrats want is for Vice President Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment along with his cabinet to essentially use the 25th Amendment under the Constitution. It's an extraordinary power to push the president out of office.

Now, Democrat after Democrat was calling on Pence to move ahead with the 25th Amendment in the aftermath of the president inciting those deadly riots in the Capitol earlier this week. There is no indication of that that is the route that Pence is going to go.

[02:04:58]

RAJU: And so if he does not do that, then the Democrats say, well, then he may impeach President Trump.

There is one problem. There is 12 days left in Donald Trump's presidency. So, even if the Democrats have a quick vote, presumably next week, if they're to do that, getting an impeachment trial done in the United States Senate, which is still controlled by Republicans up until January 20th, then that is not going to happen quickly if the Republicans don't want to do that.

And they would still need two-thirds majority in the United States Senate to remove the president from office, 67 votes in the chamber currently controlled 53 -- 52 Republicans at the moment with David Perdue of Georgia no longer a United States senator.

So it would be a very difficult road to go down to try to get the president removed from office unless there is significant bipartisan support. At the moment, they are not there yet. Republicans are angry at Donald Trump. They are not there yet about pushing him out of office.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE (on camera): So, what is Article 25? It's an amendment to the Constitution providing a legal mechanism to replace a sitting president who is unable to perform duties of office. It was passed after the assassination of President Kennedy. It mostly deals with physical incapacity but can be used if a president is considered unfit to lead. Here's the process. The vice president and the majority of the cabinet need to inform Congress that said the president is unfit. If the president objects, then Congress will hold a vote. If two-thirds of both the House and Senate agree, the president cannot lead, then the vice president steps in, becoming president.

Former White House Chief of Staff John Kelly has not said a lot publicly about Donald Trump since his resignation in January 2019. He spoke with CNN's Jake Tapper on Thursday about the attack on the Capitol and the president's role.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you were in the cabinet right now, would you vote to remove him from office?

JOHN KELLY, FORMER WHITE HOUSE CHIEF OF STAFF (voice-over): Uhh, yes, I would. The one thing we have going for us here, Jake, is it's only 13 more days. No one, as indicated yesterday by our vice president, no one around him anymore is going to break the law. He can give all the orders he wants. No one is going to break the law. We saw Mike Pence, Vice President Pence stand his ground yesterday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE (on camera): Criminal charges are being filed against some involved in the violence. Metropolitan police arrested 68 people involved in the unrest and 23 arraigned on Thursday in order not to return to the capital until their court dates.

Fifteen people face federal charges, including one man who allegedly had a semiautomatic rifle as well as Molotov cocktails. And we are learning more about the woman shot outside the House chamber. There is a video seen and a warning, it is disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Good job, guys! Go! Busted down!

VAUSE (voice-over): The woman in the upper right hand corner has been identified as 35-year-old Ashli Babbitt.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE (on camera): Her mother says her daughter was an avid Trump supporter.

Federal investigators say they are looking at everyone who is involved in that unrest, including the role President Trump played inciting the crowd.

CNN's investigative correspondent Drew Griffin has details.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE) DREW GRIFFIN, CNN SENIOR INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: These people who were at the white -- at the Capitol were really radicalized by Donald Trump. That is what happened. They were radicalized into believing a lot of this nonsense by Donald Trump and his compliant media, and actually may have been breaking the law and are going to face serious consequences.

We have found dozens and dozens, if not hundreds of potential instigators, but we wanted to point out four of them in particular. You're talking about hate -- member of hate groups, QAnon conspiracy groups, Proud Boys, Neo-Nazis. These are not good people. These are not patriots. These are people that the FBI, that the police want to see right now.

One of them made himself famous. He is this guy dressed in buffalo horn. He is shirtless. His name is Jake Angeli. They call him the QAnon shaman of Arizona, currently apparently between jobs in Arizona, according to his cousin. Just a couple of weeks ago, he was taking a selfie with Rudy Giuliani. Police want to speak with him.

A second highly visible person, Richard Barnett, take a good look at him. This is the guy who kicked his feet up at Speaker Pelosi's office, stole an envelope, and then later came out, and we have audio of this guy, bragging about what he did. Take a listen to what he told one of our affiliates.

RICHARD BARNETT, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I left a note on her desk that says, Nancy (bleep).

GRIFFIN: So he is still proud of what he is doing.

[02:10:00]

GRIFFIN: Obviously, the police are looking for him. There are repercussions already beyond the arrests that were made. We know several people who have lost their jobs.

An attorney from an insurance company has lost his job out in Arizona. A former Pennsylvania state representative lost an adjunct professorship at a college in Pennsylvania because of his involvement.

And Derrick Evans, he is a West Virginia -- actually a member of the House of Delegates, he is trying to defend himself through an attorney, saying he was just exercising his free speech, even though he was Facebook-ing live as he was storming into the Capitol.

A lot of questions being asked, not only by the police, but by employers, by other members of these peoples' communities, just what the heck were you doing up there on Capitol Hill?

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE (on camera): I spoke earlier with law professor Jessica Levinson. She is also a host of the "Passing Judgment" podcast. And I asked her, what jeopardy could the president be facing?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JESSICA LEVINSON, PROFESSOR, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: This all falls under the umbrella of stop the bleeding. But, of course, the words that he said for the last five years, four years, four months, four weeks, four days, all of that matters a lot more than 24 hours after the violent insurrection, that he says, let's all calm down and there is going to be a peaceful transition of power.

VAUSE: Yeah, I mean, it is gaslighting in the extreme. We will have his troops, his supporters or whatever you want to call them. Prosecutors in theory could bring charges of seditious conspiracy or rebellion or insurrection. Is that even a remote possibility or is it more likely that they will be charged with unlawful activity on the capital grounds, which is much easier, much more lenient offense?

LEVINSON: Yeah. So, it is a remote possibility. But, John, if you look at the way they were treated, I don't see throwing the book at them at this point. So you could face those far more serious, far rare charges, for instance sedition, insurrection. You could try to, although I don't think you would get it, try the president of the United States on inciting violence.

But I think you are much more likely to get tamer charges like destruction of federal property, breaking and entering into federal property. Why do I say that in part? One, those other charges are so rare. But two, because look at how the Capitol police respond to this group as opposed to other groups where we have seen far more peaceful protests.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE (on camera): Thanks to Jessica Levinson there from Loyola Law School.

Well, one of the most prominent conservative voices in the U.S., the Editorial Board of the Wall Street Journal, is calling on Trump to resign and avoid a national trauma of a president being forced from office.

The editorial on Thursday said Mr. Trump's actions are impeachable, but rather than face possible removal, it wrote, he has refused to accept the basic bargain of democracy, which is to accept the result, win or lose. It is best for everyone, himself included, if he goes away quietly.

Right. Stay with CNN for the very latest developments. Can House Democrats (INAUDIBLE) if Vice President Mike Pence refuses to move on getting President Trump out of office?

And coming up, we will also look at how the pandemic is impacting other parts of the world, including U.K., France, and Israel.

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[02:15:00]

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VAUSE: Coronavirus numbers continue to rise. More than 88 million known infections, almost 1.9 million people have died. The countries in shades of red and orange are seeing the worst of the outbreaks.

In Japan, they have reported a record number of new COVID infections for three straight days. The prime minister declared a state of emergency for Tokyo after surpassing 2,000 cases on Thursday for the first time.

Selina Wang is live for us in Tokyo with the very latest on this. So, the state of emergency, it is notable, it is just the capital of Tokyo. So what does that allow the government to do and why is it just Tokyo, why not beyond?

SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: John, Tokyo, where I am right now, is the hardest hit. I am outside of Tokyo station. This is a business and shopping district. As you can see, it is pretty empty here. Not completely empty, but far less people than in normal times.

Now, this state of emergency, however, is not a hard lockdown like we have seen in some other parts of the world. The Japanese government actually has no legal means to enforce restrictions, so this move simply urges residents to stay at home, work from home, for restaurants and bars to close by 8 p.m. But schools are remaining open.

And many health experts have said that, quite frankly, this move is too little, too late, and that in order to effectively curb transmissions, this state of emergency needs to be far longer with more astringent requirements and restrictions.

This is as Japan is reaching record high cases nearly every day, reporting more than 7,000 cases for the first time on Thursday. The prime minister's approval ratings have dropped dramatically over his handling of the pandemic. Critics say he has been reluctant to take any moves that would hurt the economy.

In fact, up until late December, the government had been encouraging people to go out and spend, eat and travel toward domestic travel campaign. And in November, Suga had dismissed calls for a state of emergency. And now, cases have more than doubled since then.

And John, of course, we are now less than 200 days from the Olympics. The success of this event here in Tokyo really depends on how fast the world can get vaccinated and the pandemic can be curbed here in Japan. Vaccinations in Japan are not set to start until late February, which is far slower than other countries.

But the prime minister continues to maintain that the Tokyo Olympics will be held this summer safely and securely. The stakes are high here. Officials have said if they do not go forward as planned, there will be no more delays, they would simply be cancelled. John?

VAUSE: In the early parts of the pandemic, Japan was one of these countries getting high grades for controlling the outbreak. Now, obviously, it's a very different story. What happened between then and now, I guess?

WANG: John, absolutely. Earlier on in the pandemic, Japan was praised for keeping cases low without a strict lockdown. That was partially because Japan early on had encouraged its residents to socially distance. They had invested in aggressive contact tracing. There is also quite widespread respect here, generally, of government guidelines.

But all of that has gotten much harder. Quite frankly, the whole world is dealing with COVID fatigue. And winter weather here in Japan is also driving people indoors.

I also want to mention, John, that the vaccine being rolled out here in Japan is not a magic bullet. Japan also struggles from widespread vaccines skepticism. This is driven by a history of vaccination safety scares and concerns about side effects. John?

VAUSE (on camera): Yes, and a lot of places, as well, about side effects and concerns about the vaccine. Selina, thank you. Selina Wang there live in Tokyo.

And now to Europe, starting next week, U.K. will require all international arrivals to undergo COVID testing, including British nationals returning home.

And the World Health Organization is calling for tougher measures to deal with the new variant, which is now being detected in 22 parts of Europe. We see cases are way up this week in places like Portugal, Ireland, and Italy.

France is extending its border closure with Britain after identifying two clusters of the variant first discovered in U.K. These concerns of the variant are making many anxious before getting vaccinated.

CNN's Melissa Bell has more on that.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It has been nearly 10 days since the E.U. officially launched its vaccination program. But where vaccine procurement was organized by Brussels, rollout was not. So far, it sees vaccinating more than 326,000 people through the website to keep the public informed.

[02:19:56]

BELL (voice-over): As of Thursday, Germany had vaccinated more than 417,000, Spain more than 207,000, but France only about 45,000.

MATTHIEU CALAFIORE, GENERAL PRACTITIONER (through translator): Every time we have wasted time when we are faced with an epidemic that doesn't waste time. It happened last spring, it happened in the autumn, and now with the vaccine.

BELL (voice-over): The French government's plan is for residents of nursing homes to get the vaccines first.

RAYMOND FISCHER, NURSING HOME RESIDENT (through translator): Of course, I do regret that it should be taking this long. Not for me, though, as give or take, eight days, it changes nothing. They can vaccinate me next year if they want.

BELL (voice-over): In response to criticism over the slow pace of the rollout in France, this week, the categories of those eligible were widened and more vaccination centers opened.

JEAN CASTEX, FRENCH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I ask that we stop the sterile controversy which means nothing apart from concern to our compatriots who are already tired and on edge.

BELL (voice-over): But France is not alone. Spain's rollout has also been criticized for being slow partly for a lack of nurses. And in Germany, there are fears that not enough doses have been ordered.

JENS SPAHN, GERMAN HEALTH MINISTER (through translator): The truth is that the vaccine is a scarce resource worldwide, and that's why we have to ask large parts of the population for patience.

BELL (voice-over): But patience is wearing thin in countries like France, where the restrictions in place cost the economy every single day.

XAVIER TIMBEAU, PROFESSOR, OFCE-SCIENCEPO: The lockdown is limiting economic activity and the numbers are impressive. So, around one billion euros a day, so late is costly.

BELL (voice-over): The plan in France is for 50 million people to be vaccinated by the summer. That would mean more than two million vaccines given every month, and a much faster rollout than we have seen so far.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE: Due to surge of the pandemic, Israel is aiming for a total national vaccination within three months. Almost 15 percent of the population have already received the first of two injections of the Pfizer vaccine.

CNN's Sam Kiley joins me now from Jerusalem. So the end of (INAUDIBLE) they're looking having this done. It's a pretty ambitious target.

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is an ambitious target, John, but it is one that the Israelis are at least on their way to achieving.

Just listening there to the figures from Melissa's report coming out of Europe, in this country, those are just staggeringly woeful 300, 400,000 vaccinations given out in countries like Germany and Italy, Spain and France.

This country is vaccinating at a rate of over 100,000 a day. They have hit 1.7 million plus vaccinations so far as of midnight last night, though, Israel also went into a higher level of absolute lockdown at midnight.

School children were not able to go to school, businesses were all closed and only essential services are open because there has been a surge in the number of infections.

A little over two weeks ago, John, Israel went into a lockdown that was largely ignored. But it clearly had a little bit of effect perhaps as the numbers of infections a few days ago were just over 8,000 and now just over 7,000. That slight decline might indicate that the limited lockdown that they had might have had an effect.

But for the next two weeks, Israel is going into a total lockdown. Of course, Benjamin Netanyahu and his government had been working extremely hard to make sure that they don't get left behind when it comes to the supplies of vaccines.

It is reported here that the Israeli prime minister has been on the phone personally to Pfizer and other pharmaceutical companies to try to make sure that the chain of vaccines does not get broken by a lack of supply. He seems to be confident that he can get the country vaccinated by the end of March.

Of course, we have to be conscious, John, as you will be very well aware, March 23rd yet another Israeli general election, yet again Benjamin Netanyahu will be fighting for his political survival.

And on Wednesday he appears in court. The courts will remain open here in Israel. He will be appearing in court for his second appearance here in Jerusalem on Wednesday on corruption charges. John?

VAUSE: So much happening in Israel. It always seems to be the case. Sam, thank you. Sam Kiley, live in Jerusalem.

For the very latest on the COVID-19 pandemic, please visit our website, cnn.com. Follow that blog on how the world is responding to the crisis.

Just 12 days now from a new U.S. president and a new administration. President-elect Joe Biden is forcefully condemning his predecessor, saying Trump incited the mob to attack the Capitol and threatened Congress.

[02:24:59]

VAUSE: He is not saying much to backup Democrats and Republican lawmakers who want Trump out of office before the 12 days are up. And CNN's Jeff Zeleny explains why.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President-elect Joe Biden has not yet weighed in publicly on these calls for impeachment or invoking the 25th Amendment. But I am told by a variety of advisers that he does not have the appetite to go forward with that.

Yes, he believes it's the purview of Congress to do that, so he, of course, is waiting until he takes office, but I am told by advisers that he does not believe that is the way to unify the country.

But he has not spoken publicly about that yet. He declined to do so on Thursday here in Wilmington. He could do it later today when he does have another set of announcements on cabinet secretaries. This will indeed round out his cabinet picks.

This afternoon, here in Wilmington, we are told he is going to announce his commerce signatory, labor secretary, and the head of the small business administration.

For commerce, he is turning to Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo. For labor secretary, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh, and for the head of the SPA, Isabel Guzman, who is a California small business official there.

So this is going to round out the pick of cabinets. And one thing, of course, has changed dramatically in the two months since he accepted victory, the Democrats will control the Senate when he takes office in just 12 days. That means all of these nominees certainly will have a smoother path to confirmation.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE (on camera): Thanks to Jeff Zeleny for that. Now, Donald Trump's final days in office have been marked by a number of high- level resignations. After four years of enabling the president's reckless behavior, so many scandals and controversy, what difference does that actually make now? Earlier, I spoke with political analyst Michael Genovese.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

MICHAEL GENOVESE, POLITICAL ANALYST, PRESIDENT OF THE GLOBAL POLICY INSTITUTE AT LOYOLA MARYMOUNT UNIVERSITY: There is a saying (INAUDIBLE) saying that he reminded me of that -- do not give wings to scorpions. The Republican Party has done that. Now, it's coming back to bite them a little bit.

But they are not going to be able to get rid of him. He is going to be hanging around, and he is going to be the face, maybe the voice and maybe the conscience of the party for the next several years.

VAUSE: OK. That's interesting. But we will just finish on the resignations that we are seeing, Education Secretary Besty DeVos, Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao. Who cares? I mean, it just so late in the game. Does it do any good?

GENOVESE: It makes them feel good, probably. They can go to the dinner parties in Georgetown and say, oh, you know, I'm a person of honor, I left when things got really bad. They got really bad from the very beginning. They were enablers. Most of these folks played Donald Trump's game. They bowed to Donald Trump. And now, when it is convenient and easy, we've got 13 days left, they go, oh, I am a person of principle, I am leaving. It is just too convenient, too easy and out. Those people are responsible.

George Will, a conservative columnist, today said, there are people who are going to wear the scarlet S, sedition, on their chest, Cruz and others. And I think that is something we can't let the Republican Party forget, and that is why there is (INAUDIBLE) in the future if they want to bring back America to that party.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

VAUSE (on camera): Just part of my conversation with Michael Genovese, the president of the Global Policy Institute at Loyola Marymount University.

Well, still ahead here on "CNN Newsroom," how the world reacted to an attempt to overthrow an election result in the U.S., the world's champion to democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BORIS JOHNSON, PRIME MINISTER OF THE UNITED KINGDOM: I unreservedly condemn encouraging people to behave in the disgraceful way that they did in the Capitol.

ANGELA MERKEL, CHANCELLOR OF GERMANY: After the election, there are winners and losers. Both have to play their role with decency and responsibility.

VAUSE (voice-over): A live report on that and then we will continue to follow the COVID-19 pandemic with a new study suggesting more half of the cases are spread from those with no symptoms. More on that when we come back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[02:30:00]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back everybody. I'm John Vause. In many ways, the reaction has been predictable. Everything from shock, horror, and dismay to glee, and maybe a little shout out (ph) over the violent riots in Washington, DC on Wednesday.

Around the world, U.S. allies have called on Americans to hold on to their values of democracy, rule of law, and peace, while adversaries have maybe taking some unfair shots. Nic Robertson is live in London for us this early hour.

So, Nic, in many ways this was predictable. But it also seems to be an element of pity there as well from some of these world leaders. NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I think there's certainly an element of people distancing themselves from President Trump, having witnessed what's happened. And there's certainly an element of putting themselves away from his image.

You have the Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, announcing that he won't wear his red cap, which is, in essence, is Make the Czech Republic Great Again, sort of a takeoff of Trump's MAGA hat. So, that's a clear distancing.

And I think perhaps most significant of all was the amount and proliferation and speed with which the criticisms of President Trump came.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON (voice-over): On nightly news cast the world watched America's democracy falter. As we filmed, protesters tore down Pelosi's nameplate.

ROBERT MOORE, ITV NEWS WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: And so here we are right now inside the halls of Congress.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): In the aftermath, newspapers showering shame on the embers of Trump's presidency, world leaders damning in their response.

BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: What President Trump has been saying about that has been completely wrong and I unreservedly condemn, encouraging people to behave in the disgraceful way that they did in the Capitol.

ANGELA MERKEL, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (via translator): The basic rule of democracy is after the election, there are winners and losers, both have to play their role with decency and responsibility so that democracy itself remains the winner. I regret very much that President Trump did not admit defeat in November and again yesterday.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Close allies wondering how it came to this.

SCOTT MORRISON, AUSTRALIAN PRIME MINISTER: They're a great friend of Australia, and they're one of the world's greatest democracies. And so we just - our thoughts are with them, and we hope for the peaceful transition to take place.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): On Twitter, both Norway's and Sweden's Prime Minister's directly blaming President Trump. "Heavy responsibility now rests on President Trump," Erna Solberg wrote. "President Trump and several members of Congress bear substantial responsibility," wrote Stefan Lofven.

From Canada to Chile, Norway to Greece, India to Australia and New Zealand, global leaders vented worries, sadness, horrendous. The world is watching common themes.

ROBERTSON (on camera): These leaders know that what happens in America has a trickledown effect on the rest of the world. They worry about how this can influence democracy going forward. These are real concerns.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Meanwhile, America's enemies seemingly scoring points, in China, taking some apparent sarcastic satisfaction.

HUA CHUNYING, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESWOMAN (via translator): We hope that the American people can enjoy peace, stability and security as soon as possible.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): And in Moscow, a TV anchor reading a foreign ministry's statement. "The reason behind the divide in American society lies also in the archaic electoral system."

Yet perhaps most striking, some allies still held back from blaming Trump directly.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: The rampage at the Capitol yesterday was a disgraceful act and it must be vigorously condemned. I have no doubt that American democracy will prevail.

[02:35:00]

EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT: What happened today in Washington, DC is not America, definitely. We believe in the strength of our democracies. We believe in the strength of American democracy.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Everyone, it seems, counting on President- elect Joe Biden to make it all better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: Well, Joe Biden has said that he will hold a summit on democracy in his first year. But I think the reality for President Trump going forward during the new administration will be that so many of those doors of capitals around the world that might have been more open and friendly towards him, are perhaps not going to look the same way going forward.

And I think that idea of Trumpism spreading around the world - that takes a dent at times like this. However, what happens in America really ricochets and impacts the rest of the world. So if that's - if this sort of style of attack on democracy continues in the United States, then expect it to hit other countries in the world too.

VAUSE: Nic, thank you. Nic Robertson, live for us there in London.

For more of the international response, CNN European Affairs Commentator, Dominic Thomas is with us from Los Angeles. Dominic, good to see you.

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Good to see you, John.

VAUSE: OK. So, out of all the reactions, the one which sort of stood out the most was sort of kind of unusual in a way was Emmanuel Macron, the French President. He was there in front of - the French president was in front of a U.S. flag, there was a French flag and an EU flag as well. But, he was defending the values of American democracy, trying to not only reassure his own country, but the American people as well, it seemed.

The U.S. has been hated and loved and despised and idolized and demonized, but never has it been pitied like this.

THOMAS: Yes. I mean, this is the sad situation that we that we find ourselves in. And I think what you really showed there in the run up is that Emmanuel Macron understood this and spoke at the beginning and French and then moved over to English to really kind of highlight that historic relationship between France and the United States, and really to argue that these institutions would survive the Trump presidency.

But he's also well aware of the fact that this country, because of COVID, is under lockdown. And that people in France, like in the United States, were watching events unfold live on television, having already followed very closely the American election cycle. And I think was well aware of the tremendous concern that people had, and in fact, the shock of watching events unfold in this way in Washington, DC.

VAUSE: You reactions, in many ways, were fairly predictable. There was a glee from adversaries like China, almost giddy that the U.S. and its democratic institutions are under attack. But not just under attack, but under attack from within.

THOMAS: Yes, and I think that was - that's actually crucial. Those responses were quite predictable. But I think that even though, just looking at the European Union, of course, attributing blame to Donald Trump was unambiguous across the leadership spectrum.

The various prime ministers and foreign secretaries, presidents and so on, also underscored, like Macron had done, the survivability of these democratic institutions. But I think there was one really interesting point when Donald Tusk, the former President of the EU Council tweeted that there are many Trumps.

And I think that this awareness that everybody has a capital to defend, as Donald Tusk argued and that Europe has struggled, and continues to struggle with these Far Right organizations and parties that were in many ways, emboldened by President Trump, was a really sort of interesting way of dealing with that situation. And you look at the spectrum of responses.

VAUSE: What we're looking at with the turmoil in the U.S. and with the rise of sort of Right Wing white nationalism, it also seems to be this get out of jail, cut free card for countries with a record of human rights abuses.

In Turkey, here's a headline from Thursday from one of the news outlets. "Turkey empowers police to use military weaponry to crush protests." On Biden's to-do list, rebuilding American moral authority to take on issues like that, it's really important and something which needs to be done. Not exactly a priority, though, and cannot actually be done in the first place maybe in one term or more, I guess. THOMAS: Yes. I mean, it's absolutely clear that the Biden-Harris administration's absolute priority is to deal with the COVID and health crisis, and then to begin the process of restoring the American people's faith in its institutions that have been undermined by the Trump presidency. That one cannot adequately, highlight, underscore the extent to which the multilateral order has also been undermined by the Trump presidency.

[02:40:00]

And I think that the Biden-Harris administration must also launch a foreign policy offensive. And that COVID permitting, when President Trump attends, or goes to visit NATO, the EU or attends the G7 meeting or the G20 meeting in Rome in October, I think you'll find he will be welcomed by with open arms by the members and leaders of these organizations that are absolutely eager to rebuild and strengthen the Transatlantic relationship, particularly in the face of a rising Russia and China that are considered hostile to the interests of Europe itself.

VAUSE: Yes, Dominic, I think you mentioned President Trump - you said - you met President Biden, it's just to clarify for our viewers.

THOMAS: Yes.

VAUSE: I'd be doing it live. Thanks. Good to see you. Dominic Thomas there for us in Los Angeles.

THOMAS: Right. Thanks, John.

VAUSE: Researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control have found that more than half of the COVID transmissions may be coming from those who are asymptomatic or with no symptoms. This study also found in-person University classes are causing a surge in the spread of the virus as well. Here is our Jacqueline Howard.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN HEALTH REPORTER: COVID-19 cases jumped 56 percent in counties were large colleges and universities held in- person classes last fall, now that's according to this new study from the CDC. And researchers looked at the incidence of COVID-19 in the 21 days before and after classes started and this is what they found.

While cases rose in counties where universities held in-person classes, cases dropped 18 percent in counties where universities held remote classes. And cases fell 6 percent in counties with no universities at all. And the CDC says students, faculty and staff should remember wear a mask and social distance. Back to you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Well, still to come, while the U.S. president creates his own election crisis, a record number of lives are being lost each day to a very real and very deadly pandemic.

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VAUSE: The coronavirus pandemic is now killing more people every day in the U.S. than ever before. On Thursday, for the first time, the daily death toll topped more than 4,000 according to Johns Hopkins University.

More than 365,000 have died in the U.S. since the beginning of the pandemic. There is a record number of infections as well. That means hospitals across the country are now overrun and under stress.

And there was once the promising of a vaccine. It was a silver lining in all of this. But now, distribution issues are plaguing the entire country, proving this pandemic remains far from over. CNN's Erica Hill explains.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): The vaccine is making it into arms

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Couldn't come soon enough in my mind.

HILL (voice-over): But not nearly as soon as promised.

[02:45:00]

MONCEF SLAOUI, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC ADVISER, OPERATION WRAP SPEED: In the month of December between the two vaccines, the Pfizer and the Moderna vaccine, we expect to have immunized 20 million.

HILL (voice-over): That didn't happen. Of the 21.4 million doses distributed so far, less than 28 percent, 5.9 million, have been administered.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: If we don't catch up on what the original goal was, then we really need to make some changes about what we're doing.

HILL (voice-over): The federal government now offering $3 billion to help states with the rollout. HHS telling them to expand eligibility as the American Hospital Association calls on Secretary Alex Azar to coordinate the national efforts among all of the states and resolve barriers to rapid deployment.

Even if a million people were vaccinated every day, it would take nearly six months to reach just half the U.S. population.

DR. ABDUL EL-SAYED, EPIDEMIOLOGIST AND PUBLIC HEALTH EXPERT: All of this speaks to a failed leadership from the very top of American government and here we are in January breaking records.

HILL (voice-over): Former hotspots among the 10 states posting their highest seven day averages for new cases since the pandemic began.

MAYOR MARTIN WALSH, BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: The numbers continue to grow in the wrong direction. HILL (voice-over): In California, where hospitals are reaching a breaking point, L.A. County's public health director noting bluntly, "this is a health crisis of epic proportions." Southern California, one of two regions in the state, where there are zero ICU beds available.

Daily reported deaths in the U.S. topping 3,800 Wednesday, another record. This funeral home in Nevada added refrigerated trailers to handle the increased need.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, it's something that I never would ever have believed in my career, I would ever have to be dealing with this.

HILL (voice-over): At least 52 cases of the new variant of the virus first identified in the U.K. have had been documented in the U.S. And a new study from the CDC finds hundreds of cases identified late last summer over a two week period at an unnamed Arkansas University were linked to fraternities and sororities. That was before the school banned gatherings of more than 10 people. Erica Hill, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Infections are hitting new highs in Colombia, more than 17,000 cases in the last 24 hours, adding to the overall total which is approaching 2 million. 300 people died on Thursday from COVID-19. Total death toll more than 4,500 since - 45,000, I should say, since the pandemic began.

Brazil now has more than 200,000 coronavirus deaths, that's second only to the United States. The country also reported a record number of new cases on Thursday, nearly 88,000. Brazil has the third most number of infections of any nation in the entire world.

Meanwhile, Brazilian officials are charting progress made with the vaccine. Researchers say Phase III trial show the vaccine developed by the Chinese company Sinovac side effect is 78 percent effective. Here is Matt Rivers.

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MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this pandemic has been trending in the wrong direction in Brazil recently. And unfortunately, new data that came out on Wednesday only serves to reinforce that point.

Nearly, 88,000 newly confirmed cases were reported by Brazilian health authorities on Wednesday. That is the highest single day increase of this pandemic so far. There's new cases joined by more than 1,500 newly confirmed deaths from the virus. Those deaths have now pushed the overall death toll in Brazil to more than 200,000 for the first time.

There was some good news in Brazil on Wednesday with the governor of the state of Sao Paulo announcing that a Chinese vaccine called CoronaVac that had been undergoing Phase III trials in the country, that trial has shown that the vaccine has a 78 percent efficacy. That is a number that officials there are very happy about. There is still some confusion about exactly when the distribution of that vaccine will take place. The governor of that state says that he hopes to start vaccinating people this very month. And that would come as welcome news to this country, because as we just mentioned, with those numbers trending in the wrong direction, vaccines are desperately needed, as this pandemic just shows no signs of slowing down in Brazil. Matt Rivers, CNN, Mexico City

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Still to come, inside the insurrection through the eyes of a British TV news group.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOORE: What's your message to the Capitol Hill Police and lawmakers here?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is our country. This is our House. That's it.

VAUSE: We'll hear from the correspondent caught in the middle of history. That's next.

PROTESTORS: USA, USA, USA...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[02:50:00]

VAUSE: "USA, USA, stop the steal, we want our country back," just some of the typical stuff the rioters on Capitol Hill were chanting during their violent insurrection. ITV News, Washington Correspondent Robert Moore had a firsthand look at what happened as the rioters left the rule of law in shreds. He is part of this report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERT MOORE, ITV NEWS WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We follow the aggrieved and infuriated Trump supporters as they stormed the building, through broken windows and doors they had forced open. And for a few heady moments, they felt they had won their precious victory.

PROTESTORS: USA, USA, USA. Stop the steal, Stop the steal, Stop the steal...

MOORE (on camera): We're now in the very heart of the Congressional Building.

What's the purpose of storming Congress itself?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because they work for us. They don't get to steal it from us. They don't get to tell us we didn't see what we saw. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We respect the law. We were good people. The government did this to us. We were normal, good, law abiding citizens, and you guys did this to us. We want our country back. We are protesting for freedom right now. That's the difference.

MOORE (on camera): What's the purpose of storming Congress?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How I know that.

MOORE (voice-over): They reached and entered the Speaker's office itself. Although, Nancy Pelosi and other lawmakers had already been evacuated to safety.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here you go. Here go brother.

MOORE (voice-over): As we filmed, protesters tore down Pelosi's nameplate.

MOORE (on camera): And so here we are right now inside the halls of Congress. This is exactly what so many anticipated, and yet the Capitol Hill police are doing their best, but failing to control the situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: And after filing that report Robert Moore with ITV News, spoke with CNN's Erin Burnett.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOORE: We were at that point just at the exact security vulnerability of Capitol Hill. There have been some scuffles outside and then we followed this crowd of Trump supporters up into a side door. They broke that window, got through the door and into the very sort of corridors of power.

And what we saw there, what we heard was a real blend of different views in a way. Yes, they were the ultra-nationalist, the sort of proud boys were there in that crowd. But there were also just people who had deep down the rabbit holes of some pretty dark and deeper conspiracy theories, believing not only that the election had been stolen, but many other things. For example, one person said to me, we're after pedophiles on Capitol Hill.

So there was some extraordinary sort of diversity of views if you like. And in addition, there were also those who have been carried away, were almost intoxicated by this heady atmosphere. There was almost a sort of a belief that - against all the odds, they've broken through the Capitol Hill lines, and were somehow humiliating the Washington political establishment. So a multitude of different views.

Yes, a mob undoubtedly unruly. Yes, there was destruction. As you saw, we witnessed the ransacking of Nancy Pelosi's office. But are they domestic terrorists? President-elect Joe Biden put it today, that's the debate I think that will unfold over the current - over the over many weeks indeed. (END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:55:00]

VAUSE: And still many questions about how this mob actually managed to breach Capitol Hill security. Earlier, I spoke with CNN National Security Analyst Juliette Kayyem. She served as Assistant Secretary at the Department of Homeland Security for the Obama administration. And here's what she had to say about handling all these riots.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: From the beginning, this was a situation in which law enforcement got overpowered and overwhelmed. So I think of it in two parts.

One is, why did they not have the manpower, womanpower to essentially fortify the Hill? Capital is on a Hill, it's known as Capitol Hill. As both before the events, because they certainly could have known online that there was going to be activity, and definitely after Donald Trump, the President, urged his supporters to go up the Hill. So they lost control of the building.

But the second part, I think the pictures that you're seeing, are a law enforcement agency, the Capitol Police, clearly trying to maintain whatever order they could and deescalate so that the rioters, which they did, eventually would leave voluntarily.

There was not a purge. There was not extra weaponry. There wasn't the military going in. That was a tactic you can criticize it. But I think given who was in in those buildings, the representatives and senators, the Capitol Police decided to at least try to get as many people out voluntarily.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Thanks, Juliette Kayyem for that. And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm John Vause, please stay with us for another CNN NEWSROOM at the top of the hour with Michael Holmes. See you tomorrow.

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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: The Trump presidency in turmoil. New resignations and calls for Donald Trump to be removed from the White House immediately.

Plus, new fallout from the massive security failure at the U.S. Capitol, all of this of course, in the middle of a global pandemic, that hasn't stopped. There are COVID records being set around the world.

Hello, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes. Thanks for your company. This is CNN NEWSROOM.