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Biden Unveils Comprehensive Plan To Fight COVID-19; Top Republican Wants Trump Impeachment Trial Delayed; Japan Determined To Hold Games Despite Cancellation Rumors; U.S. President: Vaccine Effort A" Wartime Undertaking"; Biden Cabinet Nominees Awaiting Senate Confirmation; British PM Needs a Post-Brexit Trade Deal with U.S; Biden Inauguration Rattles Qanon Believers; India Celebrates Harris as First South Asian VP in U.S. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired January 22, 2021 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[01:00:23]
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: A wartime effort to fight coronavirus and a slew of executive orders, President Biden busy on his first full day in office. Shutting down the rumors, Japan's Prime Minister determined to hold the Olympic Games this year. Also confused and disappointed conspiracy theorists losing faith in the lies they believe.
Hello, and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Michael Holmes and this is CNN Newsroom.
Welcome everyone. Joe Biden has wrapped up his first full day in the White House rolling out a plan to fight the coronavirus pandemic. He says it is based on science, not politics. The new U.S. President signing executive actions to increase supplies for vaccinations and testing and boosts the development of therapeutics to treat the virus. Plus, he wants travelers to the U.S. to provide proof of a negative COVID test.
Meanwhile, the Republican Leader Mitch McConnell wants the Senate to delay Donald Trump's impeachment trial, perhaps until mid-February. He says the ex-president's legal team needs time to prepare. And Democrats may go along to speed up approval of Mr. Biden's Cabinet nominees in return. First stop CNN is Phil Mattingly with more on the ambitious new plan for fighting COVID.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Let me be very clear, things are going to continue to get worse before they get better.
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: (voice-over): On President Joe Biden's first full day in office, a singular focus the fight against the pandemic.
BIDEN: We will get through this. We will defeat this pandemic. MATTINGLY (voice-over): The Biden administration unveiled a raft of executive actions designed to centralize the federal response and bolster its effectiveness.
BIDEN: To a nation waiting for action, let me be clearest on this point. Help is on the way.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): One that includes new uses of the Defense Production Act to surge supplies development of advanced therapeutics data collection and the establishment of a pandemic testing board as well as new actions to extend mastering requirements during interstate travel on trains, planes and buses and a key symbolic focus, reestablishing trust in the federal government.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES: The idea that you can get up here and talk about what you know what the evidence, what the science is, and no, that's it. Let the science speak. It is somewhat of a liberating feeling.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): But the problem is facing the nascent administration are significant sources say with Jeff Zients, the White House COVID response coordinator, saying bluntly, "what we're inheriting is so much worse than we could have imagined". Biden echoing that point.
BIDEN: The rollout has been a dismal failure thus far.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): But Dr. Anthony Fauci pushed back on the idea that the Biden team was left with nothing.
FAUCI: We certainly are not starting from scratch because there is activity going on in the distribution.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Fauci did acknowledge a ramp up as Biden pledged in all of government approach.
BIDEN: We'll move heaven and earth to get more people vaccinated for free and create more places for them to get vaccinated.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Even as he bristled at a question of whether the administration's goal of 100 million shots in 100 days was less than ambitious.
BIDEN: When I announced that you all said it's not possible, come on, give me a break, man.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Broadly, it's a change in direction that goes far beyond just the pandemic as Biden through executive action has moved to undo some of his predecessors' key initiatives.
BIDEN: There's no time to start like today.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Already moving to rejoin the Paris Climate Accord while killing funding for the border wall, were sending a travel ban on Muslim majority countries and revoking the presidential permit for the Keystone XL pipeline, even as a clear reality hangs over the new administration.
BIDEN: Right, we're going to need legislation for lots of things we're going to do.
MATTINGLY (voice-over): Biden officials already working behind the scenes to build support for his $1.9 trillion relief package, sources say. But first, a need to confirm top appointees with only one director of national intelligence Avril Haines confirmed so far, a number one that fall short of Biden's predecessors. And looming over everything on Capitol Hill, the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D), HOUSE SPEAKER: It will be soon, I don't think it will be long.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:05:03]
MATTINGLY: And while the exact dynamics of that impeachment trial remain unknown, one thing is for sure when it comes to Capitol Hill. The Biden administration desperately wants a legislative win out of the gate and they believe desperately needs a legislative win when it comes to the multiple crises they're facing, whether it's economic or public health, they need Congress to act by an advisor say. What's going on behind the scenes right now is their effort to push Congress into that place, efforts from the Legislative Affairs team, from their top economic officials to get not just Democrats but Republicans on board with a bipartisan proposal to address the economic and public health issues raised by the pandemic.
Right now, Republicans, they are blanching at the idea of a $1.9 trillion price tag. But make no mistake about it, President Biden ran on the idea that he is a bipartisan dealmaker. His time in the Senate, he says, proves that. Well, he'll get another chance to prove that in the coming weeks. Whether that ends up being the case, well, that remains an open question.
Phil Mattingly, CNN, the White House.
HOLMES: Joining me now from New York, CNN Political Analyst, Julian Zelizer. And I wanted to talk to you about, you know, historically, what is it about the first 100 days marker? I mean, four years ago, you wrote in The Atlantic, and I was reading it today, you said that putting too much pressure on success in the first 100 days creates incentives for quick and sometimes hasty action. Why is it a thing a mock up?
JULIAN ZELIZER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, it's an artificial marker that we've had since Franklin Roosevelt was president in the 1930s. And we continue to use it as a way to measure the president, what can the president do in 100 days? How much legislation can they get through, and it's useful. But often presidents do important things in year two or three of their presidency. And often what they do initially doesn't turn out to define what they're about. So, it is artificial. But in this case, given we're facing an emergency in this country, I think it's a little like the 1930s and that the first few months will be quite important.
HOLMES: Yes, absolutely. I guess if we're going to take 100 days of thing in this in this case, you know, obviously coronavirus as you pointed out. What else do you think he needs to do to achieve in order to extend his political capital beyond 100 days?
ZELIZER: I don't think he needs to do much, frankly. I think the pandemic defines this presidency, and everything related to it. The economy, the education system in the country, the social fabric of the nation, and I think the pandemic should be the framework for President Biden's first 100 days. But in doing that, he can deal with all the different issues that are connected directly to this particular public health crisis.
HOLMES: Right, exactly. I guess, so far, what we've seen, it is only day two or three. A lot of what he has done is undo. I mean, I think nine of his first 17 executive actions were to undo Trump actions. What do you think that, you know, going forward how important is it that it's more than doing and not the undoing although there's a lot that probably needs to be undone?
ZELIZER: Well, he was smart in day one to do a lot of the undoing. People are still focused on the inauguration. They're focused on his new plan for fighting COVID-19 so he reversed the Muslim ban. He reversed many issues on the climate that President Trump, former President Trump had taken. And that's good, because the media really isn't focused on that right now.
But I think he'll have to hold the previous administration accountable. And he'll have to start to slowly undo some of the issues such as immigration restriction that the former President put into place. That said, I think the President's focus has to be on the pandemic. He has to get the country back to some kind of normal by the summer or fall. If he can do that, you'll have another 100 days. And that's when he can do bigger things.
HOLMES: Now, you wrote a fascinating and lengthy thread earlier this week and made the point that in the broader picture, post-Trump, the system -- it wasn't that the system worked, it was that the system survived, explained that.
ZELIZER: Well, there's been a lot of celebration at the start of this presidency, that the constitutional system of our transfer of power worked well, and that the stability of our democracy ultimately remains intact, but it barely did. I think January 6th is as important as January 20th. And we should see just how close we came to a really dramatic effort to overturn the election, not just with the insurrection but with the President's attempt to reverse the votes in many states.
[01:10:10]
And we have to understand why that happened, what kinds of reforms are needed, so there can never be as turbulent to transfer his power as we just went through. And we have to remember all the people who were essential to making sure that the system frankly didn't collapse. And so celebration is good but we should be very vigilant and cognizant of all the problems that were exposed in the last month.
HOLMES: I only got a minute or so left, but real quick, I mean, you're a historian, what are a couple of things that really do need to be changed?
ZELIZER: We need to have a better system after the election to make sure that you can't simply push to overturn the electoral account if there's no evidence of fraud. We have to restore a federal commitment to protecting voting rights. And we have to look at curbs on presidential power that clearly are not strong enough, given what we have seen can take place if the presidency is under the hands of someone who will go very far.
HOLMES: Excellent analysis as always. Julian Zelizer, Professor, thank you very much.
ZELIZER: Thanks for having me.
HOLMES: Now, Joe Biden will make his first call to a foreign leader as U.S. President in the coming hours. He's going to be speaking with close ally, the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The White House says they will likely discuss Biden's executive order to revoke the permit for the Keystone oil pipeline.
For more, let's bring in CNN's John Defterios. He's live for us in Dubai. I guess the old environment versus development debate. I mean, this decision by Biden on the Keystone pipeline, it fits into a much wider agenda in particular climate, right?
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS, EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Yes, I think that's correct, Michael. The Keystone pipeline is highly symbolic at the start of the Biden administration. He's out to send a signal that he wants to make an energy transition into renewables and away from oil and gas. So anything that's not completed when it comes to that sector, or has not even started, it's going to be likely shelves, this is going to carry 800,000 barrels a day down to the Gulf Coast refineries and potentially for export.
And if you notice the response from Justin Trudeau, the Prime Minister of Canada was very nuanced, saying he was disappointed on the pipeline project, but very happy the Biden administration is going to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement. This is something that Donald Trump exited. And he, Trump, approved that pipeline, and it was held up in the courts, a lot of resistance in the United States by the environmentalist.
Now, Joe Biden has a very ambitious plan, Michael, $2 trillion beyond the stimulus package to make that energy transition to solar wind, hydrogen in the near future. He wants to work with Europe to update the Paris Climate Agreement at COP26 in Glasgow at the end of the year. But it won't be simple with the Senate split 50-50. Let's take a listen. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD MORNINGSTAR, CHAIRMAN, ATLANTIC COUNCIL GLOBAL ENERGY CENTER: I think a lot can be done, a lot can be done with respect to a stimulus. There can be a lot done in cooperation between the U.S. and E.U., which we can get in more specifically. But there's going to have to be some compromise in the Senate to get legislation passed, and we'll see how much that compromise has to be. So, again, high expectations, but it's not going to be perfect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DEFTERIOS: It's going to be a challenge indeed, Michael. Next Wednesday is climate day in the United States. This is very symbolic, expect Joe Biden to lay out this plan that I'm talking about for green energy deal. And kind of the biggest component of that is to move to 100 percent renewable energy on the electric grid in the United States by 2035. And that in the energy business is very ambitious, the number one economy in the world.
HOLMES: Yes, indeed. John, good to see you there my friend. John Defterios for us there in Dubai.
DEFTERIOS: Thanks.
HOLMES: Now, the Japanese government says it is determined to host the Olympic Games this summer, despite some rumors and reports that they would be canceled. Let's get right now to CNN's Selina Wang in Tokyo with the details. You know, some rumors flying around but being knocked down, correct?
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The Times of London reporting that the Japanese government has privately concluded that the Olympic Games should be canceled because of the pandemic. This was citing an unnamed senior official as part of the ruling coalition. But the Japanese government has denied this report to CNN. And the IOC president just yesterday said that there is no plan B that the games will go on as scheduled. And the Prime Minister today again reaffirming that the country is determined to hold these games.
But, Michael, of course, no surprise here that there's growing skepticism. The outlook is grim. We're only six months away from the Tokyo Olympics.
[01:15:08]
And right now, Tokyo, the host city is in a state of emergency. Japan is dealing with an unprecedented surge of COVID-19 cases. Foreign travelers right now are banned from entering Japan, not to mention that this country is behind several other countries in terms of rolling out the vaccine, the rollout is not even expected to start until late next month.
Now, I spoke to the longest serving member of the International Olympic Committee Dick Pound and he told me that he's not entirely confident that these games will go on as planned. Take a listen here. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DICK POUND, INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE: Confident? Not, not, not. It's not a guarantee, of course, and everyone understands that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WANG: And Michael, I cannot overemphasize how big of a deal it would be if these games were canceled. The only times these games have been canceled in modern history is during World Wars. And it would, of course, be a huge loss to Japan, not to mention the athletes, the sponsors, Japan has already spent at least $25 billion on the Olympic Games. This is according to auditors, and it could grow even more potentially.
And, of course, public opposition here as well is waning. According to a recent poll by the national broadcaster NHK, nearly 80 percent of people think that these games should be canceled or further postponed. When I speak to people here in Japan, the mood is very much that there is hope, of course, but they feel it's largely unrealistic, that things can go on as planned. There is a recognition that even if the games do go ahead this summer in the best case scenario, they will not be expecting the influx of tourists, nor the influx of economic activity that this country was hoping for.
HOLMES: Yes, that is quite a remarkable lack of support for them going ahead. It really is, 80 percent. Wow. Selina Wang in Tokyo, appreciate it. Good to see you. Thanks.
We're going to take a quick break here on the program. When we come back, a grim projection from the CDC, new warnings on vaccine supply. And a few bright spots in the U.S. battle against the coronavirus. We'll have that.
And also, the U.S. and U.K. have a bomb and special diplomatic relationship. But there are some challenges in a new post-Trump, post- Brexit era. We'll have a look at those in a moment.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: Our national plan launches a full scale wartime effort to address the supply shortages by ramping up production and protective equipment, syringes, needles, you name it. And when I say wartime, people kind of look at me like more time. Well as I said last night, 400,000 Americans have die, that's more than died in all of World War II. 400,000. This is a wartime undertaking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:20:09]
HOLMES: The new U.S. President there vowing to ramp up the country's fight against the coronavirus and also increase vaccinations. Joe Biden and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warning the overall death toll will likely top half a million by mid February, less than a month away. The pandemic has gained more than 410,000 American lives since this all began, more than 4,200 of those deaths reported on Thursday.
That is Erica Hill reports. We are seeing a few hopeful signs in this battle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ERICA HILL, CNN U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This Alabama couple drove to Georgia for the vaccine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They knew that we were coming from out of state and they said that that was fine.
HILL (voice-over): New York City postponing 23,000 vaccine appointments this week, warning its supply will be exhausted by tomorrow.
ANDREW CUOMO, NEW YORK GOVERNOR: You will see a constant pattern of basically running out waiting for the next week's allocation, and then starting up again.
HILL (voice-over): It's not just supply issues.
VICENTE SARMIENTO, SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA MAYOR: Many of our seniors don't drive. Many of our seniors can't access these sites just because they don't know how to navigate these online applications.
HILL (voice-over): The reality even with 1 million shots a day, it would take more than a year to fully vaccinate every adult in the U.S.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to get those other vaccines up and as soon as possible.
HILL (voice-over): Johnson & Johnson could apply for Emergency Use Authorization in the next two weeks, and vaccine confidence is growing. According to a new CNN poll, two-thirds now say they'll try to get one up from 51percent in October. While they wait, Wisconsin and Alabama among the states extending mask mandates.
KAY IVEY, ALABAMA GOVERNOR: Quite frankly, we've run out of ways to underscore the importance of taking this virus seriously.
HILL (voice-over): Today marks one year since the first case of coronavirus was confirmed in the U.S. The CDC projecting another 100,000 could be added by mid-February.
SHAROLYN HOFFMAN, FATHER AND STEPMOTHER DIED OF COVID-19: Take it into your heart that it's not just about you not to be selfish.
HILL (voice-over): There are some bright spots. The U.S. positivity rate below 10 percent for the first time since November. average of cases in the past week down in 43 states, only Virginia seeing a rise. Though experts caution this sea of green may not last as new variants spread. FAUCI: If you have a virus that is more transmissible, you're going to get more cases. When you get more cases, you're going to get more hospitalizations. I'm going to get more hospitalizations, you're ultimately going to get more deaths.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Dr. Fauci said on Thursday that the variant first identified in the U.K., which has been found here in the U.S. is about twice as transmissible as the original strain of the virus. And it made questions about the vaccines efficacy. He said, both the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines should still work on these U.K. and South Africa strains
In New York, I'm Erica Hill, CNN.
HOLMES: Now, top U.S. infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci also weighing in on the slow vaccine rollout. He spoke with CNN's Chris Cuomo earlier about how to fix it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: February 2022, if current pace holds 892,000 doses a day, we would get to 75 percent of U.S. adults vaccinated by February 2022. Not good enough. How do we get better than that?
FAUCI: No, no. We aren't going to get better than that because with the way the plan to get people vaccinated, that we can and should get 70 percent to 85 percent of the people vaccinated by the end of the summer, if we do it correctly.
CUOMO: OK, so you're saying it could be radically sooner than that if the production ramps up the way --
FAUCI: Yes.
CUOMO: -- that we wanted?
FAUCI: Absolutely. Absolutely. And, Chris, that's exactly what President Biden was talking about, namely, getting community vaccine centers, getting the pharmacies fully involved, using mobile units to get into inaccessible places. When you put out all the plugs on that, you know, you put the pedal to the floor, you can get it done. It's entirely feasible, that if we really put a full court press on this, we can get that number of people vaccinated by the end of the summer.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And joining me now in Atlanta is Dr. Carlos del Rio. He is the Executive Associate Dean at the Emory University School of Medicine. Good to see you again, Doctor. I wanted to get your thoughts first, your take on what we heard from the President today, a stock dose of reality compared to the previous administration. It will get worse before it gets better. Vaccine distribution has been -- there's more rollout. Sobering but at least upfront and no more were rounding the corner. What difference does that approach make? [01:25:08]
DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, EXECUTIVE ASSOCIATE DEAN, EMORY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: It's a huge difference. I think whenever we talk about crisis communication, we hear that the keys to crisis communication are our truth, timelessness. Those two things are critical, right? You got to say what you know, you got to say it quick, and you have to say it with confidence.
HOLMES: It certainly is a big difference. Yes, speaking of rollout, CNN's MJ Lee was reporting earlier today that the Biden team found when they came in, a complete lack of vaccine distribution strategy. One official said there is nothing for us to rework, we're going to have to build it from scratch, essentially. And the White House COVID coordinator said, we're inheriting so much worse than we imagined. How does that complicate this fight? Do you have faith that it can be all put together?
DEL RIO: I think I have faith that it will be put together, the people there are very competent. And I will tend to disagree. I don't think they're going from scratch. I mean, something exists and something that's in places like, you know, if, you know, there's UPS, right, there's FedEx, there's -- we know how to get things to places.
HOLMES: Mask order was the first thing Joe Biden signed on day one which is, you know, again, is about that stark difference in White House messaging as much as anything, but also plans for pandemic testing board, interesting and equity task force, which is a great idea, Defense Production Act, testing and quarantining travelers. What do you, to you, should be the main policy priorities given what we're seeing?
DEL RIO: Well, again, you're quoting one of the seven strategies outlined in what's the national strategy put out by the President today. And, you know, many of us have been clamoring, that we need a national strategy to fight this pandemic. The three critical things for the federal government are leadership, and national strategy and funding. And I think having President Biden provide the leadership, having the national strategy with the seven strategies that you mentioned, some of them and having funding are going to make a huge difference.
So I, you know, I don't think there's one specifically, you got to get them all out there. This is a war that has to be fighting many points. But I think having all this different task force, all these different initiatives is going to make a difference.
HOLMES: Yes. I wanted you to speak to the importance too of, you know, it's a global pandemic, the importance of the U.S. rejoining the WHO, and taking what's long been necessary, and that is a global approach to dealing with this.
DEL RIO: That's absolutely right. We have a global pandemic, we need to engage with WHO, which is a public health agency of the United Nations, and we need to work with them. And we may be in disagreement with some things. But at the end of the day, the U.S. can provide leadership within WHO and I think it's in the best interest of the U.S. that the entire world gets immunized. Nobody's going to be safe until everybody's safe.
HOLMES: Exactly, exactly. And vaccine nationalism, no place for that. I'm wondering if you're concerned about the red flags from the South African variant, and there's more than one variant but the South African one and whether they -- the vaccines will be able to protect against it. You know, just the thought that these long awaited vaccines might not win this fight in the short term is pretty worrying. What do you make of that?
DEL RIO: Well, again, you know, I worry about variants, but you got to remember the viruses, when they're replicating, that's when they mutate improves variants. So what we have to do to control the variants is to stop transmission. If we stop the virus from replicating is we stop the virus from transmitting from multiplying, we stop that mutations from happening, we stop the variants. So, the key right now is get everybody mask, socially distance, avoid gatherings and get vaccine grow as fast as we can. Because if we do that, if we bring down the number of transmissions, we're going to bring down the mutations.
HOLMES: Something I think you and I've talked about before and it just seems to me to be pretty important, too. There was a blog post, Dr. Francis Collins, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, describing the emerging what they calling long haulers or long COVID syndrome, describing that as a real impressing public health concern. And sort of quoting from a recent survey that found that pretty much half of long haulers couldn't work six months after their symptoms develop. What do you make of that? Could this represent a pretty significant public health concern going forward?
DEL RIO: I'm very concerned about it, Michael, and I wrote about it, you know, a few months ago, in a piece in JAMA. I was one of the first persons to call attention to the public health consequences of this. Even if 10 percent to 15 percent of people have this long haul syndrome not doing well, when you have millions of people affected, that means we're going to have millions of people with disability with long term problems.
And I've heard from many of them, you know, they say I just don't think well, I have this brain fog. I have heart problems. I have lung problems. So, it's a real thing and it's something that the NIH is putting some resources for us to understand better.
[01:29:34]
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, when you put it that way too, 10 to 15 percent of 25 million cases. That's a lot of people.
DEL RIO: We're talking about real numbers.
HOLMES: Yes exactly.
Dr. Carlos del Rio, always a pleasure. Good to see you and thank you.
DR. DEL RIO: Delighted to be with you.
HOLMES: We're going to take a quick break on the program.
When we come back Donald Trump is out of office, but still facing an impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate, don't forget. We'll have new details about when that might happen just ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM.
Also, China targeting the former U.S. Secretary of State with sanctions. Is that a message for the Biden administration. We'll discuss when we come back.
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HOLMES: And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes.
The top Republican in the U.S. Senate wants to delay Donald Trump's impeachment trial until mid-February. Mitch McConnell says the ex- president's legal team needs time to prepare. And Democrats are not dismissing the idea just yet since it could allow for quicker confirmation of President Biden's cabinet nominees.
CNN's Ryan Nobles with the latest from Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good afternoon.
RYAN NOBLES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The first full day of the Biden administration and already, things are different on Capitol Hill.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE: What a difference a day makes.
NOBLES: As early as tomorrow, congressional leaders from both parties, are expected to be at the White House to meet with President Biden. A sign the new president wants to get to work with Congress. A departure from the early, adversarial relationship between the two ends of Pennsylvania Avenue during the Trump era.
PELOSI: You should not have a Trump shutdown. Are you happy with --
(CROSSTALK)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So help me God.
NOBLES: And Biden needs the help of soon as possible. A slew of his cabinet nominees are waiting for senate confirmation. While it's expected most will get through, it is the timing that could prove problematic.
SENATOR CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: We can and should confirm the secretaries of Defense, State, Homeland Security and Treasury without much delay. NOBLES: Because of the 50/50 split, Republicans have the ability to
slow the process down. They argue confirming cabinet nominees and conducting an impeachment trial against former President Trump are too much.
SENATOR TED CRUZ, (R-TX): Donald Trump has left the White House, he is no longer president. And I think they need to put their partisan hatred aside.
[01:34:51]
NOBLES: Democrats though are prepared to plow ahead. They're hopeful that Janet Yellen, the nominee at treasury, and Antony Blinken, Biden's pick for secretary of state, could be confirmed soon.
Other nominees such as Homeland Security pick Alejandro Mayorkas and Defense nominee Lloyd Austin may face a tougher vetting from Republicans. Austin requires a special waiver passed by both Houses, because he only recently left military service.
Democrats believe they can do impeachment and confirmations at the same time. Speaker Nancy Pelosi could send articles of impeachment to the Senate as soon as Friday.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If you can put any finer point on the timing for the article of impeachment?
PELOSI: No. It'll be as soon as I said. You'll be the first to know.
NOBLES: Pelosi promised that she and her Democratic colleagues, are ready to take on the ambitious Biden agenda. And argued that impeachment won't distract from the president's call for unity.
PELOSI: People think we should make nice-nice, and forget that people died here on January 6th. That the attempt to undermine our election, to undermine our democracy, to dishonor our constitution, no. I don't see that at all. I think that would be harmful to unity.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: CNN's Ryan Nobles reporting there from Washington.
Well, President Biden hopes to extend an expiring arms treaty with Russia. The new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, noon as New Start expires on February 5th, It says that the U.S. and Russia will limit the number of weapons each can possess to 700 deployed in governmental ballistic missiles, submarine launched ballistic missiles and heavy bombers equipped to carry nuclear weapons. It also limits each side to 1550 deployed warheads.
Now, a new U.S. president means a new chapter in the country's special relationship with the U.K. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had a seemingly cozy relationship with Donald Trump. But now he has to build a good rapport with President Joe Biden. And, of course, push for a trade deal with the U.S.
Nic Robertson tells us what could stand in the way.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I look forward to working with him, and with his new administration, strengthening the partnership between Indian --
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: U.K. PM Boris Johnson quick to embrace Joe Biden's presidency and with good reason. He was close to former president Donald Trump.
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You know who this is. Does everybody know him.
ROBERTSON: Less than 18 months ago, U.S.-U.K. relations were blossoming, a much-needed trade deal, seemingly close.
TRUMP: They call him (INAUDIBLE) Trump, and people are saying that's a good thing.
ROBERTSON: Then came Trump's election loss to Biden. And the Trump- inspired insurrection.
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I unreservedly condemn encouraging people to behave in the disgraceful way --
ROBERTSON: But Johnson's speedy denouncements belied many missed opportunities for Democrat support.
NICHOLAS BURNS, HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL: I don't think trade is going to be the first issue of concern to the United States, to the new administration.
ROBERTSON: Johnson, and his predecessor were relying on Trump for a fast trade deal to gloss over the economic pain of leaving the E.U., Brexit, and overlooked building better relations with Democrats.
KIM DARROCH, FORMER U.K. AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S.: It was one of my frustrations when I was in Washington.
ROBERTSON: Sir Kim Darroch was U.K. ambassador to D.C., witnessed the damage among Democrats.
DARROCH: There was a bit of sore feelings about that.
ROBERTSON: Trump liked Brexit, liked the disruption to E.U. power, distrusted NATO.
Joe Biden and his former boss, Barack Obama believed in NATO, the value of the E.U. and actively opposed Brexit. Obama warned Brexit would hurt the possibility of a U.S.-U.K. trade deal.
BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The U.K. is going to be in the back of the queue.
ROBERTSON: Johnson, then mayor of London, scolded Obama. DARROCH: That Boris Johnson comment about President Obama's Kenyan
heritage, and his dislike of the British Empire and stuff certainly reverberated in Democrat circles in Washington. And there were some Democrats who really took -- took it very badly.
ROBERTSON: Biden, unlike Trump however, may brush aside hurtful slights in favor of national interest.
BURNS: It is in the interest of the United States to in essence recreate the special relationship with the United Kingdom. A U.K. that is out of the E.U. might possibly be a U.K. that wants to have an even tighter military and intelligence and political relationship that would be to the advantage of both countries.
[01:39:53]
ROBERTSON: Yet as Johnson celebrates Brexit, something Biden's secretary of state pick Antony Blinken called a total mess, there is no disguising the U.K. slipped in the ranking of U.S. allies.
BURNS: The United States is going to have to great -- have to greatly enhance its partnerships with Germany and with France, and the other major countries of the European Union.
ROBERTSON: Where Johnson sees a path to relationship repair is over shared goals.
JOHNSON: From tackling climate change, building back better from the pandemic, and strengthening our Trans-Atlantic security.
DARROCH: We are hosting G-7 in 2021, and we are also hosting this big climate change conference on the 26th in November which will be a great relaunch for America on the climate change scene.
Then maybe that will override any remaining bad feelings about those Johnson comments.
ROBERTSON (on camera): Reality is Johnson's political recoveries are legendary; surviving what, for others would be career crushing setbacks. Accused of lying, infidelity, political gaffes to name but three. But in Johnson, Biden is unlikely to find another politician with a greater desire to rekindle his hero, Winston Churchill special relationship with the United States. and that might just count for something too.
Nic Robertson, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: China's foreign ministry is defending Beijing's decision to sanction Mike Pompeo and 27 other people who are part of the Trump administration, saying, "the official had undermined the relationship between the U.S. and China". And, that the sanctions are, quote, "fully justified and necessary".
Kristie Lu Stout is in Hong Kong for us. -- It's all about the timing. I mean it is interesting that these sanctions are aimed at Trump officials, but were announced literally before Joe Biden had finished his inauguration speech. Hard to not to see a message there.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN: Absolutely, Michael. The Biden administration, certainly sees a in the timing of these sanctions from China. In fact, we have one spokesperson telling CNN that the considers them quote, "Cynical and Unproductive".
On the same day of Joe Biden's inauguration, China and now sanctions against 28 Trump administration officials, including John Bolton, Steve Bannon, and the former U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.
Now, the sections from China, they follow those final bold moves by the Trump administration, targeting China, including for sanctions. As well as that declaration saying that China has committed genocide against Uyghurs and other minority groups, in Xinjiang.
Now sanctions these 28 Trump administration officials, including their family members are now banned from entering Mainland China, Hong Kong, as well as Macau and any company or institution that has a link to these individuals would be restricted from doing business in China.
Early on Thursday, we heard from the spokesperson of the ministry of foreign affairs Hua Chunying who rationalized these sanctions. And also talked about the mood for relations ahead between the U.S. and China. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HUA CHUNYING, SPOKESPERSON, CHINA MINISTRY OF FOREIGHN AFFAIRS (through translator): The Trump administration, especially Pompeo, has laid too many land mines, dismantled too many bridges, and destroyed too many roads to be de cleared, rebuilt and repaired.
I think both China, and the U.S., need to pluck up the courage and show wisdom to listen to each other.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STOUT: So Hua Chunying there of the ministry of foreign affairs calling for courage and wisdom for a recent relations between the U.S. and China. But on the back of these new sanctions that were again, announced on inauguration day, we reached out to the Biden Administration for comment, and we did get this following statement. Will bring it up for you, from a spokesperson with Biden's National Security Council, this is from Emily Horne, who says this. Quote, "The Biden-Harris has noted China sanctioning the more than two dozen former Trump administration officials imposing these sanctions on inauguration day is seeming an attempt to play the partisan divide. It won't work.
Americans of both parties oppose this unproductive and cynical move. President Biden -- looks forward to working with leaders and in both parties to position America to out compete China, unquote. Now, there may be a new administration in the United States but there is still tension, that unprecedented tension, between the U.S., and China, on multiple fronts in regards to assertions of sovereignty in the South China Sea. Human rights in Xinjiang, and an Hong Kong, and of course, the tech war, the trade war, and as well as Taiwan. It's interesting to note, that a Taiwan representative was there, was present, and invited to the Biden inauguration.
The first time such a thing has taken place since relations between the U.S., and Taiwan were severed back in 1979.
But, there are still points of cooperation between the U.S. and China, namely, climate change. We have already heard from the ministry of foreign affairs. They applauded Americas decision to go back to the Paris Climate Accord.
And we also heard this from China's ambassador to the U.S. who issued on Twitter, rather polite welcoming of President Joe Biden. Let's bring up the tweet for you. Former ambassador (INAUDIBLE), who wrote this. Quote, China looks forward to working with the new administration to promote sound and steady development of China-U.S. relations and jointly address global challenges in public health, climate change and growth.")
But polite words aside, the tension is real. And after four years of Donald Trump, there is a more confident China. This is the China that the Biden administration us told to work with. Back to you.
That's fascinating. KH1: Yes. That's fascinating. Kristi than k you. Kristie Lu Stout, there in, are in Hong Kong. That is a relationship we need to keep an eye on. Thank you.
We are going to take a quick break on the program, what is next for Qanon?
When we come back, Joe Biden is in office, meaning the conspiracy groups great awakening. Failed the materialize but laborers are reacting. Next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back.
Charges and arrests are mounting in the weeks following the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. So far, at least 120 people are facing federal charges in connection to the deadly riots.
Investigators say there could be hundreds more. Many arrested have been linked to far right groups. A leader of the Florida Proud Boys group was arrested this week in Florida.
Now, some Qanon supporters were also among those storming the Capitol. Just two weeks later, many believers were sent into disarray as they watched their conspiracy theories they've followed four years unravel as Joe Biden was sworn into office.
CNN's Donie O'Sullivan reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BIDEN: The constitution of the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So help you God.
BIDEN: So help me, God.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congratulations Mr. President.
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The election was stolen, Biden would never become president, Trump would round up the so-called deep state in a reckoning.
It was all part of conspiracy theories like Qanon that many Trump supporters bought into.
How are you going to feel when Biden is inaugurated at noon today?
WILLIAM WIETING, TRUMP SUPPORTER: You're going to ask me that? I don't believe -- this sounds so crazy and I recognize how crazy this sounds, but I don't believe Joe Biden is going to be sworn in as president today.
O'SULLIVAN (voice over): We met Trump supporter William Wieting here in Washington early on the morning of the inauguration. He says he is not a Qanon believer, but he does a spouse some of its theories.
WIETING: I mean, the martial law thing is the sort of basis conspiracy theory, no?
WIETING: Well, you want to, everybody wants to tag facts as conspiracy theories so it's just a way of discounting facts.
[04:49:56]
O'SULLIVAN: But if he doesn't declare martial law, would that prove to you that at -- by this time tomorrow that it was a conspiracy theory?
WIETING: No, if he doesn't declare martial law, then I will feel like my vote no longer counts in the United States and that's not a good thing.
O'SULLIVAN: Wieting and many other Trump supporters are living in a world of conspiracy theories. As a reality of Joe Biden's presidency set in some Qanon.
As the reality of Joe Biden's presidency set in, some Qanon farms are filled with people, coming to the realization that they had been duped.
TRAVIS VIEW, CO-HOST, QANON ANONYMOUS BROADCAST: There are a lot of Qanon followers who feel very angry, and disillusioned as they realize that they have been misled. But there are also many people who are still doubling down, still trusting the plan, still thinking that something very dramatic is going to happen.
WIETING: Joe Biden was just sworn in, about 15 minutes ago. O'SULLIVAN (on camera): So I met, you right here.
WIETING: We were in the dark last night.
O'SULLIVAN: Last night. It was about 3:00 a.m. You were out here streaming live on YouTube. Do you feel like you have been duped? That you've been tricked? That you've been fooled in some way here?
WEITING: Actually no. The way I felt was that -- when I saw, you know, I was waiting up until a minute that he said "I, Joe Biden," when he was -- I'm watching him walk up, I'm thinking to myself, my live is about to completely change because I've been saying I'm either a conspiracy theorist or I'm a profit.
You know kind of like it's kind of a Christian humor, I'm not a prophet. But -- I was just kind of in shock. And I thought I had to reevaluate everything the way my life was going to be now because it's so different than my expectations. And I literally was just kind of walking around like what now?
O'SULLIVAN: Where are Qanon followers going now? I mean what is next?
VIEW: So some Qanon followers, probably a minority, will give up on Qanon and fall away. So others will stick to the plan, believe that there is some sort of great, dramatic revolution that's going to happen at any second.
Still others will probably be recruited into even more dangerous, and more militant extremist movement.
O'SULLIVAN: It's not as if all of this is going away now that Biden is president.
VIEW: No, I'm afraid not.
O'SULLIVAN: Do you think, maybe, you're wrong about Joe Biden being sworn in, you might be wrong about the whole election rigging thing?
WIETING: No, I'm convinced the election is a fraud. So as you can see there he was able to accept that he had fallen for a conspiracy theory at least in some way about the inauguration but was unwilling to accept, to realize that he had been duped about now the election was stolen
And I think that highlights the challenge going forward, you know. Just because Biden is inaugurated doesn't mean that the challenges, and problems of online misinformation is going away. It is going to be a major challenge, I think, for the Biden administration, and for Silicon Valley, for all of us to address in years to come.
Donie O'Sullivan, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: When we come back, Kamala Harris has many firsts attached to her name. One of them is first South Asian to become U.S. vice president. Well, CNN spoke to her uncle in India. We'll get his reaction, when we come back.
[01:53:01]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Kamala Harris made history, of course, on Wednesday. The first woman vice president of the United States, also the first South Asian in that role.
CNN's Vedika Sud shows us Harris' ancestral village in India and how it prepared for her swearing in.
[01:54:56]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The duties of the office, upon which I am about to enter.
JUSTICE SONIA SOTOMAYOR: So help me God.
HARRIS: So help me God.
VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): While America witnessed history, the village of Thulasendrapuram in South India, almost 8,700 miles from the White House, better known as Harris' ancestral home where her maternal grandfather was born, broke into celebration as Kamala Harris took her oath as vice president of the United States.
The usual quiet of the night disrupted with celebration and fire works.
For them Harris is like family.
BAMA KRISHNAMURTHY, THULASENDRAPURAM RESIDENT: A village with some 2,000 families has become world famous today. It is just such a proud moment for us.
SUD: The buildup to the inauguration began early Wednesday morning. In the shadow of the COVID-19 pandemic, people cooked for the special occasion.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am so excited that's why I cooked the fryuma (ph) to welcome her to the village.
SUD: Decorated their courtyards -- and held prayers at the village temple Harris' extended family members have attended.
S.V. RAMANAN, THULASENDRAPURAM HEAD PRIEST: I heard that she has a five-year-old child, and she used to come, she has come to this temple with her grandfather.
SUD: In Delhi, Harris' uncle, whom she fondly calls Uncle Balu was flooded with congratulatory message and calls.
GOPALAM BALACHANDRAN, KAMALA HARRIS' UNCLE: For the last two-three weeks, there were no calls. But yesterday and today, I'm getting a lot of calls.
SUD: Harris often credits her mother Shyamala as one of the most important influences in her life.
HARRIS: To the woman most responsible for my preference here today. My mother Shyamala Gopalan Harris, who is also in our heart.
SUD: Shyamala was all of 19 when she moved to California from India to pursue her studies. An active civil rights crusader, she later raised her two daughters amid many adversities.
BALACHANDRAN: In spite of the discrimination and all the things she personally felt, she brought up her daughter to fight for minorities and everything.
So normally when I see Kamala Harris -- I think more and the more and more I think about it, the more and more feel what a damn good job Shyamala did, you know.
SUD: Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: I'm Michael Holmes. Thanks for spending part of your day with me. I will be back with more CNN NEWSROOM in just a moment.
I will see you on the other side.
[01:57:45]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
