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GOP Implodes As Extremists And Mainstream Republicans Clash; Two Of Trump's Lead Impeachment Attorneys Leave Team; QAnon Jumps From Online Conspiracy To Real-Life Violence; Biden Administration Touts Ambitious Climate Change Plan; Newly Revealed Police Video Shows Rioters Attacking Officers. Aired 8-9p ET

Aired January 30, 2021 - 20:00   ET

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

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Russia's Health Minister Mikhail Murashko is also on the list for allegedly covering up Alexei Navalny's poisoning with a suspected nerve agent last year and hindering efforts to evacuate the opposition leader to Germany for treatment.

[20:00:13]

The Russian health prime minister has not yet responded to our requests for comment.

Last week, tens of thousands of Russians protested after Alexei Navalny was detained on his arrival back here Russia, having recovered in Berlin for his poisoning. A big security operation is now underway for what could be another wave of demonstrations across Russia. Pam?

PAMELA BROWN, CNN HOST: I'm Pamela Brown in Washington. Welcome to viewers in the United States and around the world on this Saturday evening. You're in the CNN Newsroom.

And we start this hour on Capitol Hill where the GOP is essentially turning on itself. Rookie Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is not only facing fierce criticism from Democrats but also from one of the Republican Party's former standard bearers, Senator Mitt Romney.

Joe Johns is with us now to tell us more. Joe, this may personify the battle for the future of the GOP here?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Pamela, and it is not pretty at least so far. Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene is kind of doing her own thing right now. She tweeted out today that she talked with former President Donald Trump. She said she had a great conversation. She was grateful to him for what she called his support and she also said that Democrats are now coming against her the way they used to come against Donald Trump.

Then she got into a back and forth with Republican Utah Senator Mitt Romney. Romney tweeted out about the lies Marjorie Taylor Greene has told especially the big lie about Donald Trump winning the election. She shoots back in a tweet essentially saying that Romney should grow a spine or grow a pair. So that's not pretty at all. Then there's also a back and forth about meetings, which tells you a lot about the disarray that's going on in the Republican Party, especially over on the House side. The top House Republican, Kevin McCarthy, was supposed to have a meeting with the Republican leadership this week, but canceled that meeting.

The official reason for cancelation was that he's going to be on travel flying back from Texas. But colleagues here at CNN report the unofficial reason for canceling that meeting was because he didn't want to talk about Marjorie Taylor Greene, who he's also supposed to have a meeting with this week. So as you can see, a lot of back and forth about her.

She, meanwhile, is absolutely unapologetic, even though Democrats have come after her, in fact, saying she needs to be ousted from the Congress, because of things she said about or supported about assassinating Democrats, including the speaker of the House.

Just a few minutes ago, we got a press release out here from the Democrats in the House of Representatives indicating, in their view, that she also has a real problem with conspiracy theories, including QAnon conspiracies theories, all of that. But this is very much a Republican story and about what has happen to the party of Lincoln. Back to you, Pamela.

BROWN: It sounds messy. Joe Johns, thank you very much.

Well, it's hard to overstate significance what is going on right now within the Republican Party, as Joe just pointed out. As party leaders wring their hands former Arizona Senator, Jeff Flake spoke with me about his state GOP deciding to censure him along with Senator John McCain's widow, Cindy, and Arizona Governor Doug Ducey. Their reason, publicly stating that Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election. Here is more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEFF FLAKE, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Well, if what it takes to stay in the good graces of the GOP in Arizona is to excuse the president's behavior, I'm just fine being on the out. And so I know that Cindy McCain feels the same way and the governor as well. So, yes, nobody wants to be censured by their party, but the alternative is far worse.

[20:05:03]

BROWN: And just to be clear, you still consider yourself a Republican?

FLAKE: I do. I do. And I hope our party can come back. I'm not one that says, burn the party down. I want to rebuild the party into a party that believes in limited government, and economic freedom, and individual responsibility and strong American leadership.

We can win on that message, but we cannot win if we continue to condone the president's behavior and follow this, what really isn't a philosophy at all. It's more of an attitude, and it's just not -- there's nothing sustainable or coherent there. But it just cannot last much longer, if we want to be a relevant party in the future.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So that civil war within the GOP has, of course escalated after the attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Let's get you up to speed with the very latest on that investigation. Whitney Wild joins me now from Washington. So, Whitney, federal authorities have charge a woman who allegedly made a threat that's quite disturbing. What more can you tell us?

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the story is just so frightening. Federal prosecutors say, a woman named Dawn Bancroft broke into the Capitol with another woman named Diana Santos-Smith. Prosecutor say they took a selfie video and which Dawn Bancroft can be heard saying, we broke into the capitol. We got inside. We did our part.

Here is where the story gets chilling. She's also heard, according to prosecutors, saying, we were looking for Nancy to shoot her in the friggin' brain, but we didn't find her. Prosecutors say that that was a reference to Nancy Pelosi and it's just one example of that inflammatory violent rhetoric we heard throughout the day on January 6th.

Both women were arrested Friday. CNN has attempted to reach out to their attorneys. We have not heard back yet on their case.

The other big charges out this week, two members of the Proud Boys are being charged with conspiracy among a list of other charges. Between the two men, there are 11 charges total. These new indictments out yesterday are very significant because it represents a ramping up by prosecutors, a ramping up of the most severe charges.

For these two men, the accusation is that they conspired on January 6th, then January 6th only. So the conspiracy limited to just that day. But, again, the accusation is the conspiracy to stop police from protecting the Capitol.

The limitation of the conspiracy on January 6th is different from some of the other conspiracy charges we've seen and which prosecutors say people had planned for weeks or even months. But still these are extremely significant. This is a far-right group. It's one of the most notorious groups that prosecutors are looking at. So, again, we are now in this new phase, this more severe phase of prosecution, Pamela.

BROWN: All right, Whitney Wild, thank you so much. And we're just getting breaking news in, as you were talking there, Whitney, from my colleague's Kaitlan Collins and Gloria Borger, that two of the top lawyers on Donald Trump's impeachment team have decided to call it quits. They are no longer on the team. We'll be talking with my colleague, Gloria Borger, about this shortly.

But before we get to her, I'm want to look at this political feud and the real fear erupting after the attack. Our Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein, he is also a Senior Editor at The Atlantic, he joins us now.

First, like I said, we're trying to get Gloria on air, but I want to get your reaction to this breaking news from Kaitlan and Gloria that two of the president's top lawyers are no longer on the team. That would include Butch Bowers and Deborah Barbier. What do you make of that? How significant is that?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I don't know how significant it will be given the posture of the Republicans in the Senate which is, as always, throughout his presidency, the kind of sweep it under the rug. But, look, he was not exactly skimming the cream off the top of the legal profession to begin with in finding representation here. And you don't see Republican senators trying to defend his behavior on January 6th. You see them kind of retreating behind this spurious theory that you cannot have a trial for someone after have left office.

So I think it is probably just a reflection of how difficult it is to mount a substantive defense of what the president did in precipitating this unprecedented assault on the Capitol.

BROWN: Okay. I want to get to some other news just how lawmakers are feeling right now, their safety, Marjorie Taylor Greene. Here is another Georgia congresswoman who says she is scared for her life. Let's watch what she says.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NIKEMA WILLIAMS (D-GA): I mean, it's unfortunate that as a member of Congress, not only I have to worry about outside forces and people coming in and my safety but I have to worry about members that are serving with me and people on the inside who are continuing to uplift and perpetuate this violence and I don't feel safe as a member of Congress. I have 24-hour security with me at my home and just to keep me and my family safe.

[20:10:02]

And no member of Congress should have to go through this. No American should have to go through this and they are threats to our national safety.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: Have you ever seen members of the United States Congress speak so openly about how worried they are for their safety?

BROWNSTEIN: Pam, watching all of this four years ago would have been inconceivable to any American. But, look, this is the direct result of four years of the president providing oxygen and kind of atmosphere for far-right extremists to grow, to become more bold and kind of asserting themselves, and a Republican Party that has been incredibly acquiescent and really subservient as he has shattered the boundaries between them and the far-right.

And, you know, so you have not only the kind of the militias that are threatening members of Congress or kidnap Gretchen Whitmer, but you have the kind of within -- you know the call is coming from within House, I mean, literally in this case. You have members who are espousing these far-right theories who have been welcomed into the House caucus. Kevin McCarthy put Marjorie Taylor Greene on the Education Committee after she alleged various school shootings were staged to make a case for gun control.

And you see, again, the capitulation of the Republican leadership to Trump and to the forces of extremism that he has welcomed into the party.

BROWN: But why is that? Trump lost the White House, lost the Senate, lost the House in the midterms. He doesn't have Twitter. Why is he still such a force?

BROWNSTEIN: It's a great question. Look, you know, people often say that Republicans are scared of Trump, that he will mount a primary campaign -- I wanted to get much suppose some of that. But I really believe is that they're all addicted to the same drug that he is pushing. I mean, throughout the party, they are suffering erosion among white collar suburban voters who used to lean Republican, really everywhere, from Georgia to Pennsylvania to Colorado and even in Texas.

And as a result, to survive they need massive turnout among this Trump base, of non-college, non-urban and evangelical white voters. They need the voters that he is animating, and as a result you got scenes like David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, two multimillionaire corporate executives who would have been classic country club Republicans in an earlier generation onstage with Marjorie Taylor Greene on the night before the election that ends their career.

Look, I mean, the problem Republican have is about Trump can do that. There are lots of those white collars, previously Republican-leaning voters who look at a coalition and now includes Marjorie Taylor Greene, that includes people in pelts and horns and carrying zip ties and threatening to put a bullet in the friggin' brain of Nancy Pelosi and they are asking the same question. Is this the coalition where I belong? So it's a downward spiral. The more they embrace kind of Trumpism and Trump-like extremists, the more they drive away those voters, the more they need him to energize that base.

BROWN: I just think people find it confusing, because they're like, wait, they embraced her, the two Senate candidates, the Republican candidates, and they lost. Why are they still going back to the Trump well? Really, interesting discussion, Ron Brownstein. Thank you so much.

BROWNSTEIN: It's a great question.

BROWN: Thanks so much.

Well, breaking news this hour. Two of the lead attorneys working on former President Trump's impeachment trial have just left a week before the impeachment trial is set to begin. A source familiar tells CNN it was a mutual decision for them to part. Gloria Borger joins us next with more on that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:15:00]

BROWN: And we have some breaking news. CNN is learning that two members of former President Trump's legal team are leaving. This is days from his upcoming Senate impeachment trial.

CNN Chief Political Analyst, Gloria Borger joins me along with CNN Legal Analyst and former Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York Elie Honig.

Gloria, you broke this news. This is significant just days away from the trial. But from the beginning, were these two lawyers that were head of the team, were they a good match with Trump?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: No, they weren't. Let me say, Kaitlan Collins and I worked on this together, and there were not -- you know, Butch Bowers is known as a straight shooter, a by the books ethics lawyer. I have talked to Democrats and Republicans in the state of South Carolina, all of whom have nothing but respect for Butch Bowers.

They did not see him as a Trump guy. They just saw him as a Republican who has defended other Republicans, like the former governor, Mark Sanford or Nikki Haley, when they were confronted with ethics issues. But they all said to me, look, that Donald Trump is going to have a great attorney in Butch Bowers.

He then hired a team of four other attorneys, including the woman who just left tonight, Deborah Barbier, and she was very close to Bowers and she also has the same political stripe, a very independent, maybe not even as Republican-leaning as Bowers.

So the next question you're going to ask me, right, is, why?

BROWN: Why, exactly.

BORGER: We don't know the answer to that yet. Yes. We don't know the answer to that yet. I'm going to speculate that perhaps it was because of a conversation with Donald Trump. I was told by a source of mine that there was something untenable, was the word that was used. I don't know what that means, but we're going to continue to dig to find out.

BROWN: But just to be clear, you're being told this was mutual, right?

[20:20:00]

BORGER: Well, yes, that it was a mutual decision. But lots of times when people get fired or when they leave, you know, mutual decision is kind of P.R. language. We don't know. But it sounds to me, when your lawyer leaves, it means that perhaps you wanted your lawyer to leave. So we're going to have to figure out what mutual decision means. I think what it means to me is that they're trying to finesse this and make it look a little bit more graceful than it really is.

BROWN: Right. Usually, when you say mutual, it's like glossing over the real story. And so there appears to be more to this story.

BORGER: Yes, exactly.

BROWN: I know you'll find out, Gloria.

BORGER: I'm trying.

BROWN: But, Elie, this was a case, this was essentially a slam dunk case. I mean, they didn't have the Republican votes to convict and remove Trump. How significant is it for a lawyer like this, two lawyers, in this case, to walk away from a case that they were going to win?

ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Well, it's both significant and unusual to have somebody, first of all, agree to take a representation on like this on about two weeks' notice and then with just over one week left to see those attorneys, lead attorneys, walk. That tells me that there is some dissension in the ranks. I mean, that, I think, is the reasonable read on this.

And I think sort of having been in these situations and keeping in mind that Mr. Bowers is a DOJ alum and ethics specialist, what sometimes happened is the client wants you to make a certain argument, but as the attorney, you feel that can't. You cannot make that argument in good faith or ethically. That sometimes leads to this kind of rift that we're seeing here.

BROWN: And what we do know, Gloria, is that the president, from our reporting, he wanted to show for this impeachment trial just like he wanted for his last impeachment trial. And so it does raise questions about whether that was part of this discussion and part of the reason why these two lawyers left.

Now, here's what Trump's former campaign adviser, Jason Miller just told CNN. The Democrats efforts to impeach a president who has already left office is totally unconstitutional and so bad for our country. In fact, 45 senators have already voted that it is unconstitutional. We have done much work but have not made a final decision on our legal team which will be made shortly. But, I mean, they had made the decision. They were on the team and they were lead in the team.

BORGER: Yes, of course.

BROWN: He hasn't really addressed why they're leaving.

BORGER: Right. And, you know, there were five lawyers. They were a team from South Carolina, all of whom knew each other, who were recruited by Butch Bowers, who, again, has a solid reputation and he's not a showman. So if, as you say, Pamela, that he wanted a show, the president -- the ex-president wanted a show, that's not the way Bowers operates. He's known as a real negotiator. And as you point out, I mean, he's gone in to this it trial knowing that he's likely to win because of the votes we've seen on the floor already. So what would make an attorney leave a case that he knew he was bound to succeed at? And, you know, my answer to that, and Elie would know better, is saving your own reputation. I mean, that's something that you feel is unethical or that you don't want to do.

BROWN: I was going to ask -- go ahead. Go ahead, Elie.

HONIG: I think Gloria is exactly right. Look, if you're a lawyer and you're looking at a likely win -- I actually think Jason Miller is not quite correct in his statement. It's not quite true that 45 senators have voted that it's unconstitutional. What happened is Senator Rand Paul made the motion to debate it. 45 wanted to have the debate then. But two senators at least at of that group, John Thune and Rob Portman, have said they have not come to a conclusion that even though they are part of that 45.

So I don't think Jason Miller's statement is quite correct there. But Gloria is absolutely right. The reason you would step away from a high-profile case like this that you are likely to win is because you have some sort of ethical disagreement or principle disagreement with the direction of the client here, Donald Trump, wants you to go.

BROWN: Well, and it does raise a question, Gloria. You know Donald Trump and the politics of it. The Republican senators who voted with Rand Paul, they focused on the constitutionality of this. It would make sense that the lawyers who are going to defend Trump would also focus on the constitutionality of whether you can try to convict a former president. But if you know Trump, he would want vindication too on his conduct. And that is not something he's been getting from lawmakers. And so that does raises the question, if that's what he wanted from his lawyers.

BORGER: Yes. And I think that the lawyers I spoke to in South Carolina also said, look, the smart move for Butch Bowers would have been to make the constitutional case, that you can't do this to a president. So make it about process as opposed to whether the president incited insurrection.

I don't know what his game plan was. I didn't talk to Butch Bowers. So I don't have any clear idea, but I think that when you present that to Donald Trump, as you point out, he is going to want his lawyer to say he didn't do this.

[20:25:02]

He did not do this. And perhaps that was the one point of tension. Again, we're speculating here. We don't really know.

I also know that, as you point out, Trump likes to show, he also likes a showman. And Butch Bowers is not a showman. Butch Bowers is kind of somebody who negotiates behind the scene. I was told by somebody he represented that he kind of has a calming influence and he knows how to deal with folks behind the scenes. Well, that's kind of an odd couple when you think about Donald Trump and Butch Bowers. It's been that way from the beginning. And -- but, there are still three other lawyers, by the way, we don't know about. BROWN: Right, so these were the two lead attorneys.

BORGER: So there are three other attorneys that were recruited on that team. Yes.

BROWN: Right. Okay.

BORGER: And three -- there are three more. We'll see by morning if there's still three.

BROWN: Exactly. We'll be keeping an eye on that. I know you will, Gloria. Thank you for coming on and sharing the news you broke with Kaitlan on the show and, Elie Honig, thank you so much.

HONIG: Thanks, Pam.

BROWN: Coming up, cannibalism, the deep state and Anderson Cooper? They all come together somehow in the QAnon universe. It was hard to say that with a straight face. How could something so bonkers be in the mainstream? My next guest says QAnon isn't going away anytime soon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BROWN: Well, even as the dangerous conspiracy known as QAnon has gained a foothold with Republicans in Congress, most Americans are still in the dark about the movement's outlandish theories about a cabal of Satan worshipping pedophiles running the country.

Anderson Cooper sheds light on it all and his special report inside the QAnon conspiracy, that's tonight at nine. In the stunning preview, he talks to a former follower about his old beliefs, which even included some about Anderson himself.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST: I was also pulled a pedophile, phony flight logs purported to be from a convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's airplane, appeared online with my name and dozens of other well-known people.

It's all made up, of course, but QAnon supporters seem to believe it, or at least use it to try to harass me.

Jitarth Jadeja was a believer until June 2019.

COOPER (on camera): Did you, at the time, believe that Democrat, high- level Democrats and celebrities were worshipping Satan, drinking the blood of children?

JITARTH JADEJA, FORMER QANON SUPPORTER: Anderson, I thought you did that, and I would like to apologize for that right now. So, I apologize for thinking that you ate babies. But yes, 100 percent --

COOPER: But you -- but you actually -- you actually believe that I was drinking the blood of children? JADEJA: Yes, I did.

COOPER: Was it something about me that made you think that?

JADEJA: It's because Keith specifically mentioned you and he mentioned you very early on. He mentioned you by name. And from there -- if he also talked about like, for example, like your family that -- yes, and I -- I'm going to be honest, like people still talk about that to this day. I -- there's -- there were posts about that just four days ago. So, some people thought you're a robot.

COOPER: You really believe this?

JADEJA: I didn't just believe that. I, at one stage, believe that QAnon was part of military intelligence, which is what he says. But on top of that, that the people behind them was actually a group of fifth dimensional interdimensional extraterrestrial bipedal bird aliens called Blue Avians. I was so far down in this conspiracy black hole, that I was essentially picking and choosing whatever narrative that I wanted to believe in.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BROWN: Well, for more on this, we are joined by former FBI Assistant Director for Counter Intelligence Frank Figliuzzi, his new book is The FBI Way: Inside the Bureau's Code of Excellence.

Frank, thanks for coming on to discuss about this. QAnon began spreading online, as we know, years ago under Trump and in 2019, the FBI assessed it was a growing domestic threat, then it became a reality when QAnon believers took part in the Capitol riot this month. Why has this gained traction so fast?

FRANK FIGLIUZZI, FORMER FBI ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR COUNTER INTELLIGENCE: There's no question, Pamela, that it's been put on steroids because of social media, tweets, posts, chats, all at the speed of pressing the send button and that has fueled this.

And, by the way, let's not forget that because of the pandemic, many Americans have been in front of their computer screens more than ever before consuming more and more within their own echo chambers. That's all contributed to the speed with which this has happened.

BROWN: But is there something specific about QAnon that you think -- explains why it's caught fire so fast? It just -- it just -- I mean, it's clearly outrageous claims that they're making that make no sense rationally. It seems like anyone could just make anything up. Why this in particular, why did this catch steam so quickly?

FIGLIUZZI: Yes. There's a strong theory here that QAnon particularly offered extremely simple solutions for extremely complicated societal problems. So as people lost their jobs to automation, as a global pandemic descended on us that we did not understand, people increasingly saw it The simplest solutions and one solution was to default to the lowest common denominator hate, fear of the other, and pinning the blame on somebody you could see and tangibly understand and people just fell for increasingly ridiculous fabrications.

[20:35:18]

BROWN: OK. I want to ask you before you go. Clearly not everyone who believes in QAnon is a violent -- is a violent extremist. There's a big difference between extremist thought and violence. But what makes someone cross that line, especially when you think about the deadly riot on January 6?

FIGLIUZZI: This is such a critical question. And this is what the -- what the FBI is wrestling with right now, who is merely aspirational, and who is really going to move down the path of violence and execute a violent act? That's the dilemma, that's the challenge.

But usually, what hooks that person to violence is a sense of hopelessness. They've reached the end and what's concerning the Department of Homeland Security is things didn't turn out the way they wanted in the election. And there's something called forcing the end that you see in cults. That's what DHS is concerned about.

BROWN: And you also wonder how much of the mob mentality plays into that when you get like-minded people like that altogether.

Frank Figliuzzi, this conversation is ongoing. Thanks for coming on.

FIGLIUZZI: Thank you.

BROWN: And the conversation actually does continue tonight. Join Anderson Cooper for a closer look at the origins of the QAnon conspiracy. How did this fringe theory become a movement that includes members of Congress? What role did it play in the Capitol insurrection? The CNN Special Report, Inside the QAnon Conspiracy, airs tonight at 9:00 right after this hour of NEWSROOM. You won't want to miss that.

Well, tackling climate change is one of President Biden's top priorities. He's already returned to the Paris Climate Accord and is putting a stop to new oil and gas leases on federal land. But critics say it will cost jobs. I'll speak to White House Climate Czar, Gina McCarthy, about that, up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:40:05]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's a whole of government approach. But climate change at the center of our domestic NASA security and foreign policy. This is advancing conservation, revitalizing communities and cities and in the fall -- on the farmlands and securing environmental justice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BROWN: So that was President Biden on Wednesday, elevating the climate crisis to a national security priority. He signed several executive actions relating to the environment, including one that poses new oil and gas leases on federal land.

Joining me now is White House climate advisor, Gina McCarthy. She was the EPA Administrator from 2013 to 2017 under President Obama. Thank you so much for coming on. We really appreciate it.

As we just pointed out, President Biden make clear climate change is a priority in his administration. But there are complexities to climate change one, of course, is you look at China, the National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the U.S. must be prepared to impose costs on China for human rights violations. But the U.S. also needs China to fight climate change. What is the plan to walk that tightrope?

GINA MCCARTHY, WHITE HOUSE NATIONAL CLIMATE ADVISOR: Well, we have both a plan that addresses those international issues, as you know, John Kerry is the new special envoy for climate internationally, and he's been dealing with these diplomatic issues for a long time. We know that both China and the U.S. and India and a lot of the other large countries have an obligation to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions.

But right now, China is doing a lot. They are developing the clean energy economy, and we have to do the same. So, part of this is about, what are we doing domestically to actually reduce our emissions as much as we can? But this President knows that now is not the time to ask for sacrifice. So, this is all about job growth. This is all about building clean energy jobs as a way to tackle the climate crisis. And I'm talking about good paying union jobs.

So, if you look at this plan, there is no question that it's about moving us forward to build jobs, address the climate crisis, tackle a challenge of equity and move forward with every community and every worker, no one needs to be left behind.

BROWN: OK. So, let's talk about jobs, because that is an important part of the equation. What specifically are you doing to ensure people who lose their jobs as a result of these climate policies find work, especially during these difficult economic times?

MCCARTHY: Because we know that there are a lot of people that live in communities that are energy dependent, they are actually living and working in utilities, or they're living and working in coal country. And we know that there's going to be a transition, that transition has been happening for quite a while.

So, we are actually looking at opportunities to put those people to work in their communities, looking at thousands of oil and gas wells that were never properly closed at a spewing methane. We're looking at opportunities for a new civilian climate corps, so that people who are getting out of school and have nowhere to go, can find an opportunity to work in conservation efforts of forest management.

We are trying to think creatively, and we're pulling together a task force that looks at building a resilient economy so that no worker is left behind and access to good-paying union jobs can be the focus of attention from this point forward. This is not a zero-sum game. We can take care of climate and grow jobs at the same time.

BROWN: So, there are people who are already, you know, out of work because of the policies just in the 10 days that Biden has been in. And they might be saying, well, when am I going to see that job? You're talking about opportunities and there's this data from the wall Washington Post that says the projected new jobs in these industries, some of that you mentioned over 10 years, amounts to just 20 percent of the current number of coal jobs.

Washington Post that says the projected new jobs in these industries, some of that you mentioned over 10 years amounts to just 20 percent of the current number of coal jobs. So, it would raise the question, is it misleading to say that there's a career shift for all of these workers, that there's this opportunity over there for all these workers?

[20:45:25]

MCCARTHY: Yes, I don't think it's unrealistic at all to say that we can create thousands of new jobs, if not millions. Look, if someone wants to take the first step, which is to move forward with the American rescue plan, so that we can get people out of the challenge that they're facing right now with this pandemic, then we can stop losing jobs.

And then if we look forward to the build back better plan, we can start investing in the infrastructure that we need, not just to address our clean energy needs, but to move forward to actually recapture the economic strength of our country, and to show leadership internationally. That's what Joe Biden's plan is, he's not giving up on people. He's doubling down on putting people back to work and keeping them healthy. And we need both Congress as well as the whole of government approach to stand together now for the American public.

BROWN: OK. Gina McCarthy, thank you for coming on. We hope that we'll continue to talk with you. We're aiming to have a segment on climate change every weekend. It's an important issue, and I want to keep this discussion going.

MCCARTHY: Thanks, Pamela.

BROWN: Well, doctors and nurses applaud a British man leaving the hospital but that man's coronavirus battle did not stop here. He would spend more than 300 days in hospitals. Joining me tomorrow when I talk to his son about this incredible recovery and wait until you hear the special thing his sons did to help their father get better.

And still to come on CNN, the violence and the violation of the nation's capital. Tonight, new video footage only now being seen on CNN that shows a new depth to the rioter's brutality. Details up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:50:40]

BROWN: Well, some 175 people now face charges in the Capitol riot. And even though we've seen countless images of the rampage, now, we're getting a new look at, a new perspective of the assault. We warn you that some of this video is graphic, but we believe you need to see it to help understand the gravity of what happened. Here's CNN Tom Foreman.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): This is what police saw as they furiously tried to fight off the mob on this body cam footage released by the U.S. Attorney's Office. And this is what they heard as a man shouted for help near a woman who was down.

Prosecutors say among them was Michael Foy. The man they say is wielding a hockey stick in this video as the brutal hand to hand fighting rages.

Foy has been charged with assaulting a law officer, obstructing law enforcement, entering a restricted building and more. Other angles from other cameras give a better sense of how huge the mob was as it surrounded police. In this video, dragging one down the stairs where he was beaten with a flagpole.

But few images have captured the raw fury white light this body cam. The crush was so intense, some first responders say even though they knew police and rioters were being injured, they could not safely access patients due to the crowd activity.

And that woman being trampled on the stairs while calls for help went unanswered, the New York Times has identified her as 34-year-old Rosanne Boyland who later died.

FOREMAN: We have seen dozens and dozens of videos of that calamitous day, many of which are even now being introduced as evidence against rioters. But this one stands out for the sheer up close in-your-face brutality and violence of a supposed political march gone mad.

Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.

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BROWN: Well, be sure to join me again tomorrow night. Former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is at 6:00 p.m. Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace and Democratic Congresswoman Nikema Williams, they will all be joining me tomorrow night -- sorry, at 6:00.

And before we leave tonight, I want to tell you about an interview that I did back in September with a Montgomery County Maryland School teacher named Margaret Norris. When the pandemic struck, she used her own money to buy food for her students and their families struggling to get by, and no longer getting all the meals they once relied on at school.

Well, her effort grew to feeding more than 100 families with the help of the community. Here's what she told me when I asked how we could help.

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MARGARET NORRIS, KINDERGARTEN TEACHER, MONTGOMERY COUNTY, MD SCHOOLS: Our elementary school and we work with the Montgomery Housing Partnership, and they're both on Facebook. You can find us there and -- but do this in your own communities, do this at home.

BROWN: Exactly.

NORRIS: Call your local title in school if you don't know what that means, that's the first step you could educate yourself on. Find the title in your neighborhood, call them and ask what you can do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[20:55:08]

BROWN: So, I took Margaret's advice, reached out to a local school in my own community. I was told the need was great, especially among single parent homes with three or more children, and an industry hit hard by COVID-19. Started to GoFundMe, order grocery store gift cards on Amazon for money raised and left them in an envelope for the school social worker to pick up.

Well, we've raised now more than $5,000 from community donations of mostly $50 or less, and I wouldn't have done this had it not been for Margaret Norris. And now, I'm trying to pay it forward because it's so easy to do. Easy and simple way to help struggling families and your own community meet their own basic needs. I tweeted the link to the GoFundMe page @pamelabrownCNN. You can follow me there, send me your questions, always good to hear from you.

And I'm Pamela Brown. We will see you here again tomorrow night. Thanks for spending a part of your Saturday evening with us.

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