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Bipartisan Group of Senators Pitches Infrastructure Deal to Larger Group; Putin Says, I Don't Think There Was Any Hostility Between Biden and Me; Biden Says, I Did What I Came to Do with Putin; Biden Says Genuine Prospect to Significantly Improve Russia Relations; Biden Says Ridiculous for Putin to Compare Jan. 6 Protests to Russia Protests; Morgan Stanley Boss Says to Workers, If You Can Go to A Restaurant, You Can Come into The Office. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired June 16, 2021 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: OK, back here at home, Democrats will brief the White House this afternoon on a bipartisan meeting on infrastructure. The group of Senators who reached a framework for a deal just pitched to a larger group of their colleagues. And one of the lead Republican negotiators, Senator Mitt Romney, spoke to CNN just before the meeting began.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Senator Romney, what do you hope to accomplish today in the meeting?

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): I think just bringing the entire group up to speed on what our subcommittee has been working on. Where we stand, the agreement we reached. Letting the rest of the group understand where we are, and obviously this is designed to get us down the road to the point where we can have a lot more support than just the 10 that came together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[15:35:00]

CAMEROTA: OK, CNN's Manu Raju joins us now. So now that the meeting is over, what do we know?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there's a lot more that needs to happen here in order for the bill to actually move forward in order to ensure there's actually 60 votes which will ultimately be needed to pass this bill, a bipartisan bill, and they'll actually have to fill in the details here. Because there are plenty of details that are simply are just not agreed to yet. Including how to pay for this bill. Which would spent about $1.2 trillion over 8 years.

They've talked a variety of things to pay for this including redirecting money that has already been enacted by the COVID relief laws, as well as potentially raising the gas tax, subject to inflation. As well as other measures as well, like fees on electric vehicles and the like. And those negotiations will continue.

Now at the same time, the Democrats that are part of the group are trying to get buy-in from the White House. They plan to have a discussion later today with White House officials and also, they are going to continue to talk to the Democratic leadership. Now that is one track.

There are two tracks to this effort to try to get Joe Biden's massive infrastructure and social safety net proposal into law. The other track is to do it along straight party lines. To do it by a budget process that allows the Democrats to actually pass something without Republican support and actually circumvent a filibuster in the Senate. So they pass something which is 51 votes rather than the 60 that would ordinarily be needed here.

And that by a budget effort to try to do it along party lines is starting today. Chuck Schumer, the majority leader is meeting behind closed doors in the next hour with Democrats on the Senate Budget Committee to talk about the steps that they have to take to move things along straight party lines.

Now one key Democrat here though of course in the center of all of this, is Senator Joe Manchin. What Democrats who don't like -- the liberals who don't like this bipartisan deal because they say it just does not go far enough, they want Manchin to commit to that party line effort because they need all 50 Democrats to agree to go forward.

But I asked Joe Manchin today will you commit to that party line effort. He said I cannot commit to that. He said, it's not fair to ask me to commit to that. He said I'm evaluating everything, I'm not a yes or no, I'm just looking at it. So not going nearly as far as what Democrats want, even though some of those liberals say what Joe Manchin has worked on is not far enough for what they want.

So at the end of the day, they'll have to all agree to move forward, and potentially this whole effort could collapse. But you can see a lot has to happen here if this eventually as it stands any chance of becoming a law -- guys.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: All right, Manu Raju on Capitol Hill for us, Manu, thank you.

CAMEROTA: Our special coverage continues, the historic meeting between President Biden and Vladimir Putin. The stone face start and the shorter than expected conversation but things did seem to turn around by the afternoon. We'll talk about where things go from here.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:40:00]

CAMEROTA: The high-stakes summit between President Biden and Russian President Putin ended earlier than expected but with some areas of agreement.

BLACKWELL: But President Biden described their meeting as good, frank. He said he did what he came to do. For his part, Putin also said that he did not think there was any hostility during their discussion. In fact, he complimented President Biden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): I would say that he's very balanced, a professional man. It's obviously clear that he's very experienced.

He talked a bit about his family, and what his mother told him. They are important things, maybe they're not quite relevant, but it does talk about the level of his moral values. Which is very attractive and it seems to me that we did speak the same language. It certainly doesn't imply that we must look into each other's eyes and find a soul or swear eternal friendship, but essentially, our talks were pragmatic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: Gloria Borger is CNN's chief political analyst. It sounds like President Putin heard some of those folksy stories from Scranton.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes, yes, Putin is not spared, the stories from Scranton.

BLACKWELL: You know interesting that is that although Vladimir Putin said this was all business. We heard from the president, he said that foreign policy is an extension of personal relationships. Talk about what we learned today from how the president is going to approach this relationship with Putin, pragmatic, sober, but also sharing some of that personal relationship.

BORGER: Yes, I think it's the way he approaches everything. I mean you know there was some disagreement on his staff about whether he should have this summit or not have this summit. And he kept saying back to his advisers there is no substitute for face-to-face meeting, period. And that is what he said today in his press conference afterwards

You know, we look into each other's eyes and told him what I had to tell him and he could believe it, because it came from me.

So as Biden said how can president of the United States not speak out for human rights. We're going to raise issues like Navalny. We're going to raise the issues about the two Americans that are held there. And he went, you know, down his list, so that Putin would know there would be consequences if Navalny, dies, for example. And so I think this is the way Biden does everything. He does that with his negotiations on Capitol Hill that you were just talking about with Manu. And that's the way he engages in foreign policy.

[15:45:00]

The thing he also does in domestic policy, and that I noticed today in his meeting with Putin is that he makes a point, even with Putin, about not questioning motive. He kind of starts out by saying, OK, here's where I am. I'm not interested in why you are where you are, but tell me where you are, and then I'll tell you what I'm going to do about it.

So it kind of takes motive off the table which is, you know, an easier way to sort of start a negotiation. Where it ends up? You know, the bottom line here is that Russia remains a malign actor and is blaming the United States for everything. I think that's where we are.

CAMEROTA: Gloria, I don't know if you've had a chance yet to get reaction from some lawmakers in Washington to this summit. But beforehand, I was very struck by the laughable hypocrisy of some Republicans where they were claiming that President Biden was going to be really weak with Putin.

I mean, after the Helsinki press conference, it was embarrassing press conference where President Trump fell for it hook, line and sinker, whatever Vladimir Putin said, and he believed Vladimir Putin's denials about election interference over the U.S. intel agencies. So Republicans now trying to claim that, you know, Putin is going to somehow eat Biden's lunch.

BORGER: We'll, irony is dead, I guess. You can't look back on the last four years and every time that President Trump was given an opportunity to criticize President Biden, I mean president -- sorry, President Putin. He wouldn't do it.

And so you know it's kind of ridiculous. They put this out before the summit. I think what they're talking to is the Nord Stream II pipeline which a lot of them would rather have seen discontinued. That was also a debate inside the White House. I might add that the president decided to go with it largely because of Germany. And I think that people are always going to disagree on certain things about of foreign policy.

But the notion that Joe Biden who has called Putin a killer, or said he is a killer, or nodded yes in a sense when asked about it is laughable. I mean, this is, you know, this is ridiculous. And after the summit, when you look at the issues that were on the table, the issues of human rights, for example, which I don't recall President Trump ever saying was front and center for him on his agenda. Is that something that Republicans were fine with for the last four years?

BLACKWELL: Yes, didn't mention it with Putin. Didn't mention it with the Saudis. Didn't mention it with --

BORGER: Yes.

BLACKWELL: -- the Philippines, so, yes, we now know that human rights are back at the center of table. Let's talk about whataboutism, we expected that there would be the whataboutism, we saw it in the NBC interview from Putin. We've seen it for years.

You know, the question of human rights, Putin brings up gun violence. Let's listen to what he says here about Alexei Navalny, opposition and January 6th.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: That's a ridiculous comparison. It's one thing for literally criminals to break through cordoned, go into the Capitol, kill a police officer and be held accountable and it is for people objecting, marching on a Capitol and saying you are not allowing me to speak freely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLACKWELL: That was out of the President Biden responding to what President Putin said. But still the juxtaposition that whataboutism was his defense for a myriad of topics.

BORGER: Yes, on everything. I mean to compare January 6th to anything else is absurd. I think Biden called it his rationalizations which is what I think they are. And you heard that over and over and over again. So, anytime something was raised like Navalny, he would go, well, what about in the United States when -- and you see January 6th. All of these people now being imprisoned.

And so, you know, there is no comparison. We can look at that and laugh at that. And say are you kidding me? But going back to your question about Republicans, you know, how are they going to react to that? Because some of them are defending the insurrectionists, you know, and saying, well, you know, they were just like tourists. So, they seem to be more on that page than they are on Joe Biden's page about that particular item. And so, I'm wondering what they're going to say.

BLACKWELL: Well, we know the GOP response is coming. So we'll see when it comes, Gloria Borger -- thanks so much.

BORGER: Yes, predictable, yes.

BLACKWELL: -- thanks so much.

BORGER: Sure.

BLACKWELL: A new warning about coronavirus in the U.S. while America celebrates reopening, experts say there's a dangerous new variant that is spreading quickly across the U.S. Some tough question for our doctor, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:50:00]

BLACKWELL: So we're coming up on Independence Day, but independence from COVID-19 is the way that the Biden White House is hoping that the July Fourth celebrations will signal.

CAMEROTA: But there are some warning signs that we may not be COVID- free by the 4th. Royal Caribbean is now postponing its inaugural sail after eight crew members tested positive for the virus. And the CDC now calling the Delta variant that was first identified in India, a variant of concern.

Dr. Ali Kahn Is a former CDC official and is now the Dean of the University of Nebraska Medical Center, College of Public Health. Doctor great to see you as always. A variant of concern. What does that mean in plain English?

DR. ALI KHAN, DEAN OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA MEDICAL CENTER, COLLEGE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Thank you, Alisyn. Always a pleasure. So a variant of concern means that this is a type of virus from the original SARS-COVID 2 that is either more likely to be infectious or it causes more severe illness or is less likely to work with the vaccine and other drugs, so that's what makes it a variant of concern.

CAMEROTA: And do we know if it's less likely to work with the vaccines? We do know that.

KHAN: We know it doesn't. So you've heard me say multiple times, 600,000 deaths. COVID has been the great American tragedy, but there's good news in this. We have 300 million doses given out in the United States, 44 percent of people are vaccinated, and those who are vaccinated, they really are well-protected against this Delta variant, but the variant is about 50 percent more infectious.

The data from China suggests it may be more severe, and one of the mutations in this virus suggests that it may not -- the usual monoclonal antibodies, the type of treatment, may not work as well. So the big message is, please, get vaccinated.

We saw with the last variant in eight weeks, the alpha variant went to the predominant strain here in the United States, and in two weeks this strain has gone from I believe 2.7 percent to 10 percent. So there's a big chance that this more infectious variant could pick up in the U.S.

BLACKWELL: All right Dr. Khan, let's talk about the return to work. There are a lot of companies that want their workers to come back into the office.

CAMEROTA: I want the workers to come back into the office, too.

BLACKWELL: We want the workers to come back into the office, just saying.

But I want to read for you something that we heard from the CEO of Morgan Stanley. This is James Gorman on the investing conference earlier this week. He says, quote, if you can go to a restaurant in New York City, you can come into the office, and we want you in the office.

[15:55:00]

Do you think that that's a fair comparison?

KHAN: I don't think it's a very fair comparison because even before the pandemic we used to have telework and telecommuting policies. So the pandemic didn't invent people working from home. It just allowed us to open our mind to how productive people can be working from home.

So I think the better approach obviously -- this isn't a binary choice. I think the better choice is who really needs to be in the office, for what reason. And he actually gave some good examples, apprentices. You want them in the office. There's times when you're meeting with clients for creativity.

So there's lots of reasons to be in the office and lots of reasons not to be in the office. Especially for essential workers who may still have childcare issues. So just find the right blend for your organization that continues to make you a very productive organization.

CAMEROTA: But Dr. Khan, we have only 30 seconds left. Don't you think that some people have just gotten out of the habit of coming to work? Isn't it time to kind of, you know, work those muscles again that may have atrophied?

KHAN: Absolutely, Alisyn. We've been busy telling people for 16 month don't go near people and then all of a sudden, we're telling them to show up in the office. So that may require a little bit of a transition, especially since we know what the mental health impact of this pandemic has been in the United States.

CAMEROTA: Yes, I mean, that's what I'm talking about. I think that the mental health impact has yet to be written, the full story of that, and I do think that the community of going to work is important. But we've kind of forgotten how to -- some people have just gotten out of the practice of how to.

BLACKWELL: It's going to take some time. It's certainly going to take some time. All right, Dr. Ali Khan, thank you so much.

KHAN: Always a pleasure, thank you.

CAMEROTA: Come back in, everyone. The water is warm.

BLACKWELL: Yes. The room is not.

CAMEROTA: No, it's freezing.

BLACKWELL: It's freezing in here. You can't tell. But it's freezing.

CAMEROTA: Our special coverage from Geneva continues. The former Director of National Intelligence, James Clapper shares his perspective on the Biden/Putin summit.

That's next on "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END