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America on High Alert for more Attacks; Washington on Lockdown as Security Threats Mount; U.S. says Rioters Planned to "Capture and Assassinate" Elected Officials. Aired 11-11:30a ET

Aired January 15, 2021 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:17]

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Kate Bolduan. Thank you so much for joining me this hour.

It is Friday and the final weekend of the Donald Trump presidency. It is also five days until Joe Biden's inauguration. And at this moment the threat of violence breaking out around this inauguration is very high in Washington and around the country.

Security in D.C. is at levels really not seen since the days after 9/11. The nation's Capitol looks like a fortress with thousands of National Guard troops already on patrol and more on the way.

This morning, a top Trump administration official told CNN the traditional rehearsal for the inaugural ceremony is being delayed a day due to these heightened security concerns.

And also, we have this just in. A new window into what the rioters really wanted to do as they were breaking into the U.S. Capitol. A new court filing says federal prosecutors believe that the mob that seized the Capitol intended to quote, "capture and assassinate" elected officials.

Plus "The Washington Post" is just now reporting that Vice President Mike Pence was dangerously close to being directly in harm's way, much closer than initially thought.

And there is also this. New firsthand accounts from the D.C. police who were among those attacked by the mob.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OFFICER MICHAEL FANONE, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: I was just you know trying to fight as best I could. Some guy started getting a hold of my gun and they were screaming out, you know, kill him with his own gun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BOLDUAN: We're going to hear more from those officers in just a second.

But first, I want to bring in CNN's Jessica Schneider for more on the detail of the intent to capture and kill that we're learning about in this court filing. Jessica, what are you learning about this?

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Kate, you know every revelation that we're getting in these court filings, they seem to be more and more chilling.

So, this is brand-new information from the detention memo against Jacob Chansley. He was allegedly one of the first to break inside of the Capitol and his picture was seen all over social media. He's here. You could see him wearing a headdress, face paint and he carried a six-foot spear.

Now, prosecutors are now saying this in that court filing. Strong evidence, including Chansley's own words and actions at the Capitol, supports that the intent of the Capitol rioters was to capture and assassinate elected officials in the United States government. Chansley left a note on the Senate chamber dais, where Vice President Mike Pence has been presiding over the session just minutes before, warning" this "it's only a matter of time, justice is coming."

This is from that court filing. Chilling words from Chansley himself. And perhaps the most disturbing here is that Chansley's lawyer is saying that Chansley was actually just answering the call of President Trump and is now hoping for a presidential pardon. Chansley also, according to his lawyer, planned to come back to D.C. next week but he is now in custody.

So, Kate, all of these details, they continue to unfold. This is all after the suspects are appearing in courtrooms all around the country. Prosecutors releasing this evidence that they have against them and it is giving us more of a window into how determined and dangerous these people were, Kate.

BOLDUAN: And how the threat is still so very real as there are so many of them still out there. And then you also have new reporting, Jessica, from "The Washington Post." It's really shocking. We knew that Mike Pence just like all of the other senators and House members were in danger. But just how close to danger Mike Pence was in, within seconds of being found by these rioters. What are you learning?

SCHNEIDER: Right. Perilously close to danger, Kate. That's how "The Washington Post" is putting it. So, they pieced together this timeline and by their account, Vice President Mike Pence, he was hustled out of the Senate chamber one minute, 60 seconds, before a group of rioters rushed into the second-floor landing of the Senate.

"The Washington Post" saying that the vice president had ducked into an office hideaway that was less than 100 feet from that landing where the rioters had reached. And if they have gotten there maybe seconds earlier, they would have been in eyesight of the vice president.

And this account is really drawing a lot of question as to why the vice president was still presiding on the Senate floor for an hour after the Capitol chief at that time alerted his superiors that the Capitol was being overrun. Especially because the vice president wasn't evacuated off the Senate floor for 14 minutes even after the breach of the Capitol complex was reported. So, we're talking about some very tight windows here, Kate. Including just one minute, perhaps, between when the rioters got up to the second floor overlooking the Senate floor, and then they could have been within seconds of actually seeing the vice president. So, a very dangerous situation that he just narrowly averted, it seems.

[11:05:02]

BOLDUAN: Yes. Jessica, thank you for that. And great for "The Washington Post" in their great reporting on this one. Thank you.

So, for the first time since the Capitol riots, we're hearing the firsthand accounts of what officers were up against as try to fight off the crazed mob. Officers are now speaking out about their experiences which really can only be described as terrifying. Some of this is quite disturbing.

CNN's Shimon Prokupecz has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED PROTESTERS: USA! USA! USA! USA!

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In last week's deadly coup attempt at the U.S. Capitol, a pro-Trump mob swarmed the building, outnumbering and battling police officers fighting to defend it.

FANONE: It was difficult to offer any resistance when you're only about 30 guys going up against, 15,000.

PROKUPECZ: D.C. Metro Police officer Michael Fanone was in this group of officers, at the West Front entrance of the Capitol, as rioters forced their way in. They eventually push them out, into the crowd, where Fanone says he was tasered several times. While trapped, the 40- year-old says he thought about using his gun to fight back.

FANONE: Some guy started getting ahold of my gun, and they were screaming out, you know, kill him with his own gun. At that point, you know, it was just like self-preservation. You know, how do I survive this situation. And I thought about, you know, using deadly force. I thought about shooting people.

And then I just came to the conclusion that, you know, if I was to do that, I might get a few but I'm not going to take everybody, and they'll probably take my gun away from me. And that would definitely give them the justification that they were looking for, to kill me if they already didn't have -- made that up in their minds.

So, the other option I thought of was, you know, try to appeal to somebody's humanity. And I just remember yelling out that I have kids. And it seemed to work, some people in the crowd started to circle me and try to offer me some level of protection.

A lot of people have asked me, you know, my thoughts on the individuals in the crowd that helped me or tried to offer some assistance. And I think kind of the conclusion I've come to is, like, you know, thank you, but (INAUDIBLE) you for being there.

PROKUPECZ: This horrifying video shows the moment the violent mob storms into a tunnel of the building, trapping and crushing D.C. Metro Police officer Daniel Hodges by a door.

OFFICER DANIEL HODGES, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: There was a guy ripping my mask off, and he was able to rip away my baton, beat me with it and you know, he was practically foaming at the mouth. So just these people were true believers in the worst way.

When things were looking back, you know, obviously I was calling out for all I was worth, and an officer behind me was able to get me enough room to pull me out of there, and they brought me to the rear so I was able to extricate myself.

PROKUPECZ: Hodges miraculously, leaving the attack without any major injuries, saying he was shocked some rioters thought authorities would be on their side.

HODGES: The cognitive dissonance and the zealotry of these people is unreal. You know, they were waving the thin blue line flag and telling us, you know, we're not your enemies -- while they were attacking us and, you know, killed one of us.

Some of them felt like we would quick -- some of them felt like we would be fast friends because they then -- so many of them have been vocal or at least virtue signaling their support for the police over the past year.

They say things like, you know, we've been supporting you through all this Black Lives Matter stuff, you should have our back. And they felt, like, entitled. They felt like they would just walk up there and tell us that they're here to take back Congress, and we would agree with them and we'd walk in, hand in hand, and just take over the nation.

But obviously that did not -- that was not the case, and it will never be the case.

PROKUPECZ: The insurrectionists, even using unusual means in their efforts to break into the most secure areas of the U.S. Capitol Building.

OFFICER CHRISTINA LAURY, D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: The individuals were pushing, shoving officers, hitting officers. They were spraying us with what we were -- are calling essentially bear mace, it was two to three hours of, you know, heroism and bravery from these officers. I mean, the violence that they, you know, were -- I mean, they were getting hit with metal objects, metal poles. I remember seeing pitchforks. You know, they're getting sprayed, knocked down.

And I remember, you know, just reinforcements just officers pulling officers back to heal up and you know, them stepping in to get to the front.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PROKUPECZ (on camera): And it is those heroic efforts, Kate, that you hear the officer there describing that probably saved some lawmaker's lives. As we're now learning that a lot of them were targeting lawmakers.

[11:10:02]

What we're told by law enforcement officials is that the MPD, the Washington D.C. Police were instrumental in trying to allow the Capitol police to move the leaders of our country out. Is there hand to hand combat, going toe-to-toe with this vile, vicious crew, this mob that prevented them from entering further into the Capitol and harming some of the lawmakers.

BOLDUAN: It is unbelievable. But it is 100 percent reality.

Shimon, thank you to you. And thanks to producer Mark Morales as well, I know with you, for putting all of this together. Really unbelievable.

Joining me right now for more on this is congresswoman from Florida. Democratic congresswoman from Florida Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Congresswoman, thank you so much for coming in. I want to quickly if I could get back to what Jessica Schneider was just reporting about federal prosecutors saying in court filings that they believe that the intent of the rioters was to capture and kill elected officials like yourself. What is your reaction to that?

REP. DEBBIE WASSERMAN SCHULTZ (D-FL): That is just a chilling conclusion that we really in the week leading up to the domestic terror attack that was launched on the Capitol last Wednesday. We were warned as members to be very careful, to prepare, to make sure we were moving in the tunnels and not outside of the Capitol complex.

And so, to listen to the heroism of the MPD and our Capitol police officers and what they went through that day. I really am so thankful for their valiant effort, but they were failed by leadership who thankfully are now gone and rightly resigned. And there needs to be a broad based comprehensive congressional investigation in addition to the criminal investigations that are taking place.

But the bottom line, Kate, is that this violence, this terror attack was fueled and incited by President Trump and by at least two of my colleagues. Louie Gohmert, who I filed a censure resolution against. And Mo Brooks, who have been joined by Congressman Malinowski to do the same.

There needs to be accountability. Not just for the people who came and wreaked havoc in our Capitol and jeopardized the lives of hundreds and hundreds of people, but on the individuals like the members of Congress and President Trump who we impeached yesterday who need to be held to account as well.

BOLDUAN: You have been pushing specifically speaking about Mo Brooks. You have been pushing to move to a censure motion against him. Why -- what do you think censure will do? Why not move for expulsion if when you look at how serious these actions are?

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: You know, Kate, it almost seems like two trifling a punishment for Mo Brooks and Louie Gohmert. And I don't want Louie Gohmert to be forgotten about. That censure resolution was filed two days before by me because he went on national television.

The Friday before that, after he lost his lawsuit where he was trying to overturn a legitimate election, and prevent Joe Biden and Kamala Harris from being inaugurated, and suggested on national television that violence was the only option for people who wanted to block President Trump from leaving office.

And then, Mo Brooks went in front of that crowd and had thousands of angry Trump supporters who he said should go down to the Capitol and start kicking ass and taking names. These - and that exactly what they did.

These two individuals and likely more incited the crowd, urged them on and they at least deserve to be shamed in the well of the House of Representatives as far as expulsion. You know what I did was I proposed censure because censure requires a majority and it was -- I think expulsion is a bar that is not something that will likely reach. I didn't want to distract from our ability to make sure that the shame that these -- that Louie Gohmert and Mo Brooks brought on the Congress, on themselves, on their office and the danger that they put their colleagues and the leaders of our country in, needs to have consequences.

BOLDUAN: There's another element of this, Congresswoman. And you also have a couple of colleagues who have raised concern that members of Congress were even showing around some of the rioters wittingly or unwittingly that they are going to become rioters in the days ahead of the riot. Do you think, it is hard for me to even say it again, but do you think this was somehow an inside job. Do you leave open that possibility?

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: The answer is yes. I leave open the possibility. I think anything is possible. When I watched colleagues of mine who in abundance of caution, we have magnetometers unprecedented - that we have magnetometers to check numbers of people they are going to the chamber who got in the face of the Capitol police.

[11:15:02]

Even after what we went through last Wednesday who are continuing to defy the rules that we need - had to be in place to keep people safe. Anything is possible. And we did -- we do know that there were Republican members of Congress giving tours the night before. But we don't know what the purpose of the tours were. And it is just chilling that that is even a possibility and it needs to be investigated.

BOLDUAN: There's one other thing I want to ask you about because "Washington Post" is also reporting that dozens of people on a terror watch list were in Washington for the rally. A majority of them were white supremacists. Look no further than the horrific Camp Auschwitz guy that thankfully has now been picked up by police. You are the first Jewish woman member of Congress from Florida. Have you thought about in the days after, what this could have meant for you if they found you?

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Yes. Being in my office on lockdown and having the enunciator come on for the first time in 16 years of service, telling us that we have to lock our offices, that we needed to stay in the doors and that we needed to be quiet. And then watching them breach the Capitol and know that the tunnels are connected to the office buildings. It was an incredibly frightening experience, hearing, seeing the bomb squads just across the parking lot from my office window. It was real fear.

And I think we're all suffering some PTSD. But Kate, what I want to tell you, that video that CNN has been showing where there was a mega phone bashed through a window and a woman is on that mega phone telling people that are inside that there is an office just below that they could drop down, so could take the Capitol. That is my hearing room. I chair a subcommittee in appropriations, that is the hearing room where my committee meets.

The fact that this was quite likely and intention by many in this crowd to take the Capitol as that woman said, to harm and even kill my colleagues and as many people as they could to try to stop the peaceful transition of power. You're damn right. Donald Trump was impeached on Wednesday. Needs to be removed from office as soon as possible. He is a clear and present danger and those that aided and abetted him up to and including my colleagues that might have participated in some way, need to be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.

BOLDUAN: I had no idea that was your committee.

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Oh, yes.

BOLDUAN: That is terrifying.

Congresswoman, thank you so much for coming on.

WASSERMAN SCHULTZ: Thank you.

BOLDUAN: Come up for us, the view of Washington today. Lockdown in a way that we have not seen since after the 9/11 attacks. We're going to take you there.

Plus, today President-elect Biden will announce more details on his plan to fight the COVID pandemic. His goal, 100 million vaccinations in his first 100 days. How is he going to get there?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:22:00]

BOLDUAN: Unprecedented security is now in place and more is on the way in Washington, D.C. The very real threat ahead of the inauguration casting a shadow over Joe Biden's swearing in ceremony five days from now.

CNN's Pete Muntean is live in D.C. for us on the streets of D.C. once again. Pete, what are you seeing?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kate, you know the layer after layer of security here really says it all.

This is Pennsylvania Avenue. Now pretty much deserted right now. The roadblocks here stretch for miles. This would typically be the parade route from the Capitol to the White House. Now almost completely empty.

If someone did make it this far and this is about as close as one could get to the Capitol, first they'd be met by the eight-foot-tall fence that surrounds the Capitol perimeter and is also going up around the National Mall. Then this new 12-foot fence based in concrete, this is going up more and more all of the time we're seeing.

Then there is one more perimeter on the inside, another fence. This one topped with razor wire. We have learned that an inauguration rehearsal set for Sunday has now been moved to Monday. Security officials here say that the threat is a very real one.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEN CUCCINELLI, ACTING DEPUTY SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Some of the online chatter that you and I were talking about before talks about Sunday the 17th, again no specific credible threats but the chatter focused on that day is something we're paying close attention to. And so, I think that the decision was made to delay a day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: The Pentagon says it specifically is concerned about more improvised explosive devices like the pipe bombs found outside the RNC and the DNC. But take a look at deserted Pennsylvania Avenue here. Gone, The Bunting, the Porta Potty's, and the Jumbotron and maybe even the crowds for this inauguration like no other. Kate?

BOLDUAN: Pete, thank you.

All across the country, states are on high alert as well preparing for the potential of armed protests in state capitals.

In Virginia, officials are focused on threats in two different locations out of necessity. The capitol in Richmond and also the Pentagon located in northern Virginia just outside of Washington, D.C.

Joining me right now is Virginia's Attorney General Mark Herring. Attorney General, thank you so much for coming back on. How concerned are you about violence in Virginia right now?

MARK HERRING, VIRGINIA ATTORNEY GENERAL: Kate, thanks for having me. What we saw happened on January 6th with domestic terrorists taking over the Capitol was a national disgrace and a desecration of the symbol of our democracy and it is also the culmination of a presidency marked by lies and violence. Words matter and we're seeing that in real-time.

We are seeing potential threats not just in the Capitol but also in state Capitols and other locations around the country. Here in Virginia we are taking this very, very seriously. My team and I are in communication with the FBI, state police, Capitol police, Richmond police.

[11:25:05]

And while we're not seeing specific threats, we are taking it very seriously. And that is something that we have learned from that horrific Unite the Right white supremacy rally in Charlottesville in August of 2017. We have seen you could not overprepare and you must take these threats from white supremacists, extremists very seriously. And we are.

BOLDUAN: And that is an appropriate horrible comparison, right? That Virginia has had to face. You know the FBI director talked for the first time yesterday since the siege on the Capitol and he talked about the -- he described it as extensive online chatter that they are concerned about. Can you talk to me a little bit? Can you give us a window into what you all are doing to prepare for what could be attempts at a repeat in Richmond, perhaps?

HERRING: Well I've been sounding the alarm for years. Even before the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville in 2017, about the real threat that white supremacists, extremists pose. Not just as a caustic element in society, which is serious enough, but also to public safety.

And so, we are taking it seriously, coordinating with local police, Capitol police, state police. The Capitol is boarded up. Capitol Square has been closed. Permits for rallies that were planned have been canceled. State buildings around Capitol Square have been boarded up, including my own office.

So, we are taking these threats very seriously. We are in contact and communication with law enforcement that is monitoring a lot of the online conversations that are happening. Right now, we're hopeful that nothing like what we saw happens again.

And you know, a year ago this time we saw what seemed like a dress rehearsal in Richmond. It is what is called lobby day. And pro-gun groups showed up in order to protest reasonable gun safety prevention measures that the legislator -- the legislature was taking up. And while there were -- violence, it was in fact I think due to the preparation that had gone into it, as well as a lot of hard work and planning.

The FBIs had arrested three individuals who were planning to come to Richmond and plan for a race war. It seemed like a lot of the private militia groups that have been a part of what happened on January 6th were there. And we all have to take these threats very seriously.

And you know the politicians who continue to perpetuate the lies and fan the flames of these forces are also, need to be held accountable. A state senator from Virginia who is a gubernatorial candidate, was at least some of the events that led to the insurrection on January 6th and addressed crowd. And yesterday, she attempted to defend herself saying she was honored to be there.

How (INAUDIBLE) is that, to say that you're honored to be somewhere where at least five people were killed and people were prancing around the United States Capitol with confederate flag and wearing shirts that are anti-Semitic and a common thread that seems to run through it all is white supremacy and we have to take these threats seriously. And we have to hold those elected officials who are fanning the flames, repeating the lies, accountable.

BOLDUAN: Attorney General, thank you for coming on.

HERRING: Thank you, Kate. Stay safe.

BOLDUAN: Moments from now, we're going to hear from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. She's going to be taking questions from reporters really for the first time since the House impeachment vote.

Also, as we learn more about the real danger that faced her, Vice President Mike Pence and all of the other lawmakers during the assault on the Capitol. We're going to bring you that live when it begins.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)