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Democrats Prosecuting Donald Trump's Impeachment Case Paint Him As The Inciter In Chief; Joe Biden Talks To Xi Jingping For The First Time Since Taking Office; Impeachment Prosecutors Expected To Wrap Their Case Up Today; New Evidence That The Iran Nuclear Deal Is In Tatters. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired February 11, 2021 - 04:00   ET

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

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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST: And welcome to all of you watching from around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber in Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

Ahead of this hour, Democrats prosecuting Donald Trump's impeachment case paint him as the inciter in chief and present new and chilling footage that shows just how close rioters came to U.S. lawmakers.

Also ahead, President Biden speaks to China's Xi Jingping for the first time since taking office amid escalating tensions between the world's two most powerful economies.

And all the COVID virus in the world can fit inside a Coke can. I'll speak to the mathematician behind that mind-boggling stat and such -- how such minuscule particles could have such a massive impact.

Well Democrats prosecuting President Trump's impeachment -- or Donald Trump's impeachment, many U.S. Senate Republicans have told CNN they still have no intention of convicting Trump for inciting the deadly attack on the Capitol.

Now this despite two days of House Democrats revealing disturbing new video and audio that shows how lawmakers narrowly escaped harm during the Capitol insurrection on January 6.

Impeachment prosecutors are expected to wrap up their case later day, arguing that the mob was well organized and acting at Trump's direction as they rampaged through Congress.

CNN's Ryan Nobles has more.

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RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Democratic House Impeachment Manager spent day two of the trial against former President Donald Trump giving the U.S. Senators and impeachment jurors a chilling new look at January 6.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) be advised you've got a group of about 50 charging up the hill on the left front, just north of you (ph) in the stairs. They are approaching the wall now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) starting to dismantle the reviewing stand. They're throwing metal poles at us.

NOBLES: In never before seen Capitol surveillance videos, the managers demonstrated just how close the rioters came to many of the senators in the room.

REP. ERIC SWALWELL (D), CALIFORNIA: You were just 58 steps away from where the mob was amassing and where police were rushing to stop them.

They were yelling.

NOBLES: They showed video of former Vice President Mike Pence being ushered out of the chamber as the mob breached the Capitol.

STACEY PLASKETT (D), DELEGATE U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: You can see Vice President Pence and his family quickly move down the stairs. The vice president turns around briefly as he's headed down.

NOBLES: They revealed video of Senator Chuck Schumer and his security detail being forced to reroute his evacuation after confronting the insurrectionists.

SWALWELL: Additional security footage shows how Leader Schumer and the members of his protective detail had a near-miss with the mob.

NOBLES: And video of Mitt Romney breaking into a run to get away from the mob after Capitol police officer Eugene Goodman warns the Senator to double back and flee.

The managers making it clear, if not for the brave and heroic action of the members of the Capitol police, many of the senators listening to the testimony today could have been hurt or even killed.

SWALWELL: You know how close you came to the mob. Some of you I understand could hear them. But most of the public does not know how close these rioters came to you.

NOBLES: The new video and audio clips had an immediate impact on the senators in the room.

SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI (R), ALASKA: We lived it once and that was awful. And we're now reliving it with a more comprehensive timeline. I know what I was feeling the Senate chamber when I could hear those voices. I knew what it meant to be running down this hallway with my colleagues.

NOBLES: But while it was easy to get Republicans to agree the actions of the rioters was criminal, many say they can't tie back to the former president. The legal theory they have is absurd said Senator Lindsey Graham, that

somehow that Trump's a secret member of the Proud Boys? Impeachment managers never suggested Trump was a member, but they did connect the dots between the president's rhetoric and the far right extremist group.

PLASKETT: When asked to condemn the Proud Boys and white supremacists, what did our president say? He said, stand back and stand by. The group adopted that phrase, stand back and stand by as their official slogan.

(YELLING)

NOBLES: And managers repeatedly insisting the president's inaction during the attacks points to his culpability.

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REP. DAVID CICILLINE (D), RHODE ISLAND: In the first crucial hours of this violent attack he did nothing to stop it, nothing to help us. By all accounts from the people that were around him he was delighted.

(YELLING)

NOBLES: And while the evidence is damning and their emotions are raw most Republicans still remain entrenched in their position that pinning the blame on the former president through an impeachment conviction remains unconstitutional despite the Senate vote Tuesday settling that issue.

And even though it was clear that many of these Republican senators in the chamber were impacted by the presentation of the House Democratic Impeachment Managers it doesn't seem like too many of them changed their minds.

I've talked to a number of senators after the trial was over, they said that they just cannot get around this process argument. They still believe that this process is unconstitutional because the former president is no longer in office and that means it is still unlikely that he will be convicted.

Ryan Nobles, CNN on Capitol Hill.

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BRUNHUBER: Well Trump is watching his impeachment trial from his home in Florida and even if he's acquitted he still faces possible legal jeopardy in connection with the 2020 election.

CNN's Boris Sanchez joins us from West Palm Beach, Florida. Boris, so aside from, you know, railing at the incompetence of his defense team, he must be fairly sanguine since the Republican red wall in the Senate shows, you know, a few signs of cracking despite all that emotional and violent video we saw?

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes Kim, it certainly says something that despite his own attorney's poor performance, it appears that Donald Trump is headed toward an acquittal.

We should note, a big part of the reason that he was angry with his attorneys earlier this week has to do with the fact that he though that their presentation was not TV ready. He did not thing that their speeches made for compelling television and selling his argument of being innocent to the American people.

So, we're learning that the Trump legal team is actually scrambling to put together some videos and visual aids to try to make their case. And specifically they're going to try to make Democrats look bad.

Democrats who have lost elections but not conceded immediately and sources indicate that the Trump legal team is going to try liken that to the president calling for his supporters to fight on Capitol Hill on January 6.

We're also learning that the Trump legal team is going to argue that House Democrats are glorifying violence with the videos that they're presenting in this impeachment proceeding, ultimately though it's ironic having covered Donald Trump for quite some time, he's use violent rhetoric repeatedly in the past, not only on the campaign trail twice, but also obviously in his time in office.

Ultimately though this new approach, the use of visual aids and these videos does represent a sort of win for Donald Trump in the sense that his lawyers will have less speaking time. As we saw on Tuesday that was objectively a disaster, acknowledged by even fellow Republicans and allies of the former president.

Notably, Senate Republicans are eager to get this over with and they believe that using these videos will help expedite the process, Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right, we'll be watching. Fascinating stuff. Thank you so much. Boris Sanchez near Trump's Mar-o-Lago resort in Florida. Appreciate it.

Now a little earlier I spoke with Julie Norman, a lecturer in politics at University College London about the impeachment trial and I asked her why Republicans may not be moved despite those powerful and emotional testimonies that the Democrats are presenting.

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JULIE NORMAN, LECTURER AT UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON: The House Managers did exactly what they set out to do. They built a very emotive case around what happened in the Capitol on January 6. They coupled that with a rational logical narrative of the weeks and months prior to the riot, as well using Trump's own words, tweets against him showing how his actions and words led to what happened that day.

However, the challenge is going to be convincing Republican senators to agree with them on that point. Many Republican senators we know were deeply troubled by what they saw in the videos, we're obviously very emotional about the memories of that day. But, for many they still will claim that there is not a direct link between Trump and what happened. They will put the blame on the rioters themselves. Many will, of course, use the cover essentially at the procedural

argument that the trial is simply unconstitutional to try a former president and allow them to avoid convicting Trump, but also avoid defending the actions of his supporters.

BRUNHUBER: OK, so if they say, you know, the whole thing isn't constitutional the, you know, does it really matter what Trump's defense does? I mean, it certainly didn't given their initial performance.

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NORMAN: Well, the defense team even by most GOP reports was pretty rocky from their own perspective. And the defense team will need to come out stronger to make their case.

However, this at the end of the day is more of a political procedure rather than a pure judicial one. We know that many minds have already been made up. And again, we expect the defense team to pull on some of those more political strings.

They will try and frame this as a first amendment issue. That's something that resonates with many voters of course. They'll try and frame it as vengeance from the Democrats trying to come after Trump for a second time.

And again, they'll simply try and break this connecting of the dots between Trump and the actual rioters and try and put the blame on those individuals rather than on the former president.

BRUNHUBER: The members of the U.S. Capitol Police plan to hold a no- confidence vote on their leadership leader today.

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Dozens of them were injured in the Capitol riot and many remain traumatized. Officer Brian Sicknick died from his injuries and another officer took his own life. Several officers have told CNN they blame the department's leadership for failing to anticipate and prepare for the mob attack.

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All right. Still to come, it will be one of the most important global relationships during the next four years.

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So, what was said between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping on their first phone call since the new U.S. president took office? We'll have the details next. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: President Biden spoke with Xi Jinping Wednesday.

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It was his first call with the Chinese leader since taking office. The White House says they spoke about trade, security and the coronavirus pandemic. And Mr. Biden called out the Chinese leader for alleged human rights abuses.

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CNN's Selina Wang is following this story from Tokyo. So, Selina, on one hand, you know, the two men have spent a lot of time together so that might help in this new relationship.

On the other hand, sort of looking at -- looking at the read out that they put out from the call. There were plenty of contentious issues that Biden brought up there. So, where do they go from here?

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, Biden has made it very clear early on in his presidency that China is going to be a top priority. This is one of the most important bilateral relationships of the 21st century. And Biden has inherited a very messy one with China from Trump.

Now, from a personal approach it's clear that Biden is taking a more moderate and diplomatic approach to dealings with Xi Jinping than Trump did. But fundamentally, the Biden administration agrees with Trump's approach to be tough on China. What they fund deeply problematic is the way that Trump went about it.

So in this call with Xi Jinping, Biden raised concerns about China's aggression abroad as well as alleged human rights abuses at home. He also brought up areas of potential cooperation and mutual interest when it comes to climate change and nuclear proliferation.

And the call from Xi Jinping's perspective according to Chinese state media, Xi Jinping said that the two great powers must cooperate or risk disaster. He also warned Biden to read carefully when it comes to Hong Kong, Taiwan and Xinjiang using an often used phrase in Chinese state media that they are quote "Chinese internal affairs."

Now when it comes to key differences with Biden, he is taking a return to multilateralism once again working with friends and allies, as well as focusing on investing at home, especially in high technology in order to increase America's competitiveness in relation to China.

Now, according to a senior administration official, although the Biden administration is conducting a sweeping review of Trump's policies towards China at this moment those tariffs on China are remaining in place.

This official says it's not because they found the trade war particularly successful, it's because they want to consult with allies in Congress in order to determine what America's sources of leverage are.

So, Kim, it's going to be important for us to watch how engaged develops between these two countries as the number of flash-points becomes deeper, more concerning and larger.

BRUNHUBER: Absolutely. Well said. All right. Thank you so much CNN's Selina Wang in Tokyo. U.S. President Joe Biden says he will impose sanctions against military leaders in Myanmar after last week's coup in the country calling on the military to release detained political leaders.

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Meanwhile, demonstrators on the streets, well they aren't backing down. They're out protesting for a sixth straight day. Paula Hancocks is live from Seoul with more on these developments.

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Paula, what's the latest from the protests?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, we're seeing thousands of people out on the streets once again. As you say, it's the sixth consecutive day that we have seen this. And what we've -- I've spoken to activists within the country. They say that it is building momentum that more people are coming out on to the streets.

And it's a cross-section of people. You have student unions, then teachers, engineers, nurses, doctors. Monks are all part of this as well. So certainly we are seeing that those on the streets calling for at the end of what they call a military dictatorship are showing no signs of abating.

Now, up until this point there have been some injuries. There have been some clashes with police. We understand that at least two people from reports are seriously injured from being shot by police. That was a couple of days ago.

Since then though, we know that water cannons have been used and there is it appears to be less force being used against protestors. But clearly, there are concerns that this could escalate.

Because at this point the momentum is there we're being told and those on the streets calling for the end of this military coup which happened back on February the 1st and the reinstating of the democratically elected government. They're still on the streets calling for that. But the military is showing no signs of listening to them at this point.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. And as I mentioned, some more pressure being put on the country by U.S. President Joe Biden imposing sanctions.

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But you know Paula, considering the country has long experience in the past living through sanctions, will these have any effect? HANCOCKS: It's a good question and it's one that doesn't have an easy answer. There is knowledge those United Nations report (ph) just recently that showed that many of these leaders, including the main leader himself, Min Aung Hlaing, that they have very close connections to conglomerates, to companies within the country.

So, what we're seeing activists calling for is for all foreign companies to stop their alliances with these military-controlled companies. We just saw Kering Holdings from Japan do that just last week. And activists are calling for more companies and more countries to do that as well.

So, certainly, the expectation was that the reason the military first of all allowed more democracy within the country, albeit a fledgling democracy, was so that they could attract international investment and there is a hope that cutting that investment and cutting those funds to the military government itself could have somewhat of an impact. But as you say that they did have 50-years of military rule under heavy sanctions for much of that and they did still survive. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll see if these have any effects as we follow this story from Seoul, South Korea. CNN's Paula Hancocks, we appreciate it.

All right now to new evidence that the Iran Nuclear Deal is in tatters. A report from the UN's nuclear watchdog says Iran has produced more than 3.5 grams of uranium metal and that materially is banned under the 2015 agreement that the U.S. abandoned under President Trump. CNN Senior International Correspondent Ben Wedeman is in Beirut throughout this hour. Ben, so, President Biden's task in the Middle East is not getting any easier with this latest development.

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And it never was easy, Kim. Well, yes it's true that the Iran Nuclear Deal is in tatters it was in fine shape until the Trump administration pulled out of it in May of 2018.

Now, according to this report out of the International Atomic Energy Agency initially reported by The Wall Street Journal, Iran has produced 3.6 grams of uranium metal. That is a metal that is used in the production of the core of a nuclear weapon. However, The Wall Street Journal goes on to note that you need 500 grams approximately to produce a nuclear weapon.

It's also worth noting that Iran last month informed the IAEA that it would be producing uranium metal at this facility, this research facility in the city of Isfahan and it's worth noting that that facility is currently under IAEA inspection. So, certainly, this is yet another step away by Iran from the JCPOA.

But that is simply the situation we are in where the United States and Iran are in a sense playing a game of chicken. Who is going to move first, the United States wants Iran to come back into full compliance with the JCPOA, which the United States is no longer a signatory to.

And Iran wants the United States to rejoin the JCPOA and lift the sanctions that it imposed upon Iran after it pulled out of the agreement. So, it's a bit of a log jam at the moment and the question is who is going to blink first. Kim.

BRUNHUBER: Absolutely. All right, thank you so much Ben Wedeman in Beirut.

Well (ph), as COVID variants spread around the globe vaccine efficacy is being questioned. So, coming up the World Health Organization says the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine should still be used to protect the vulnerable. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: A new study from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests wearing two masks could significantly improve protection against COVID. Researchers found wearing a cloth mask over a surgical mask can block more than 92 percent of potentially infectious particles and they say simply tightening a single surgical mask can improve overall performance by nearly 20 percent.

Now, when it comes to vaccines the World Health Organization is recommending all adults can use the Oxford AstraZeneca shot and that includes people 65-years and older. The WHO also says the vaccine can also be used in countries where more resistant variants are circulating.

So for more let's bring in Cyril Vanier who joins us live from Paris. Cyril, it's been a couple of bad weeks for AstraZeneca in Europe, especially, but also in South Africa so finally now some good news for them.

CYRIL VANIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT, PARIS: Well, Kim, I think Europeans would probably want to re-qualify that. For them, the World Health Organization's recommendation that the AstraZeneca vaccine can be used in all adults isn't really good news because you have 27 member states of the EU here that all decide how they are going to use individually this vaccine.

And you have about a third of those countries that have decided not to use it in adults over 65 or for some of them over 55. It's the case for major European countries; Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, and I'm missing -- I'm leaving a few off that list.

Those countries are not going to change their mind just because the World Health Organization decided to give a recommendation for the AstraZeneca vaccine in all adults, right. All of those countries have their own individual health authorities that have already by the way gone against what the European Medicines Agency has said.

Because when the EMA approved AstraZeneca late January they had approved it for all adults. But some countries took it upon themselves because they feel they don't have enough data to limit how that vaccine is being used within their borders. And, by the way, that could change.

All those countries have said we simply don't have enough data because the Phase III clinical trials that AstraZeneca carried out did not cover enough adults, older adults over 65. Once we get more data with the trials that are currently underway in Latin America and the U.S. they may reverse their decisions and extend the populations to which this -- with whom this AstraZeneca vaccine can be administered.

BRUNHUBER: All right, excellent explanation there. Now on the vaccines in Europe, there was a mea culpa of sorts from the leader of the European Union over the rollout.