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Pfizer Vaccine Data for Children 5-11; France Never Informed of Sub Deal; Police Searching for Laundrie in Florida; Petito's Body Likely Found. Aired 9-9:30a ET

Aired September 20, 2021 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:00]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: It's vaccine is safe for young children, those under the age of 12, saying trial data shows a robust and well- tolerated response in five to 11-year-olds. The company adding that it expects data on children as young as six months old before the end of the year as well. We're going to have more on that in just a moment.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: Also developing this morning, that growing crisis at the southern border. More than 12,000 migrants now amass under a bridge in Del Rio, Texas. The Department of Homeland Security is preparing to accelerate flights to move some of those people to Haiti and other destinations. We're live there on the border. We've also just learned that Secretary Mayorkas is traveling there today.

Plus, a tragic end to a desperate search after being missing for weeks. Authorities now believe they've discovered the remains of 22- year-old Gabby Petito in northern Wyoming. An autopsy to confirm her identity is scheduled. The cause of death, though, still unknown.

SCIUTTO: Sad developments there.

There is a lot happening this morning.

Let's begin with CNN's Kristen Holmes with more on the vaccine news, Pfizer's vaccine trials for children.

Kristen, so tell us what the data shows here, because I know a lot of parents are watching.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Jim and Erica.

We cannot stress what a big deal this is. It's something that we've been waiting for. It is the first vaccine data for this five to 11 age group that we've seen yet.

Now, in addition to showing that the vaccine is safe, it also showed that it generated a robust immune response. The company also says that there were no instances of myocarditis, which is in heart inflammation that has been linked to some mRNA vaccines. So all positive news here.

And while it has not been peer reviewed or published yet, this is the first step of getting these shots into children's arms. And, in fact, the FDA, excuse me, Pfizer says they are going to submit this data to the FDA very soon to try and get that Emergency Use Authorization. So, of course, the big question now is what exactly does that mean for timing? Well, we heard from Admiral Brett Giroir, of course, the former health secretary, assistant health secretary under Donald Trump, here's what he had to say about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ADM. BRETT GIROIR (RET.), FORMER ASST. SECRETARY FOR HEALTH UNDER PRESIDENT TRUMP: If Pfizer submits the data by the end of September, which they suggested in the press release, you can get an authorization probably within the next four to six weeks. Now, I don't want to presuppose that authorization is going to happen because again it is risk benefit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: So, four to six weeks. That would be extraordinary timing, particularly given what we are seeing right now, which is parents who are scared to send their kids back to school. They're talking about virtual options. They're also talking about what that means for them going back to work. So, all of this is a move in that direction of getting shots into arms.

And I want to talk a little bit about what this trial looked like, as you said, Jim, for the parents out there. There were more than 2,000 participants, all five to 11-years-old. They did a two-shot regimen, exactly like adults, except the only difference was, this was 10 micrograms. Thirty micrograms are what we get, what anyone over 16 gets. This was a small dose there. And, again, the trial showing robust neutralizing antibody responses there.

And there was also another piece of good information that we heard from Pfizer here that we're going to be keeping a close eye on, and that is that they are expecting more data on infancy, on vaccines in infancy within the -- as early as the fourth quarter. So something, again, we're keeping a close eye on. But all this moving in a positive direction here, getting shots into the arms of children.

HILL: Yes, it certainly is. Kristen Holmes, thank you for that.

Let's dig in a little deeper now with Dr. Jonathan Reiner. He's a professor of medicine and surgery at Georgia Washington University.

Dr. Reiner, always good to see you.

I mean just your initial take on this. You know, full disclosure, mother of an 11-year-old, anxiously waiting for this. You know, as Dr. Giroir just pointed out, there's going to be a risk benefit analysis once they apply for Emergency Use Authorization. That will be part of what's going to happen there.

Can you imagine a scenario based on what we do know publicly where this would not get that Emergency Use Authorization for kids five to 11? DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Good morning, Erica.

The answer is no. So let's talk about the benefit side. The benefit side is that right now there are -- we -- the United States is seeing about a quarter of a million new cases in children every week. That represents about a 240 percent increase since the middle of the summer. So -- so an enormous number of children are getting -- are getting sick.

Apparently, and, again, the devil is in the details. Apparently the clinical trial data from Pfizer suggests that the reduced dose vaccine in kids five to 11 was very well tolerated. So unless there's some unexpected safety signal that Pfizer hasn't disclosed now and there's no reason to expect that that is the case, this will be approved for children in that age group.

The challenge is going to be to get it into kids' arms. And it -- you know, for, you know, for me and it sounds like you and many families around the country, that seems like a no brainer.

[09:05:09]

But think about what the uptick has been for the vaccine in kids 12 and older. We barely vaccinated a little more than half of adolescents in this country. So while it seems like a guarantee that parents would give their kids this vaccine, we're going to have to do a much better job educating a very diverse group of Americans that this vaccine is safe and effective and why it's important to vaccinate their kid.

SCIUTTO: So taking a glass half full approach, right, you did get half of children in that 12 to 18 or 12 to 17 category vaccinated over the course of a few months.

REINER: Yes.

SCIUTTO: What difference will it make, if and when this is given Emergency Use Authorization for younger children, to get, we hope, a big chunk of them vaccinated as well? What difference will that make in helping bring the pandemic, as a whole, under control, right? Because this is about protecting kids, but it's also about stopping spread from kids to adults.

REINER: Right. So the children in this country right now are the reservoir for this virus. So this is where the virus is hiding and this is how it's spreading. You know, kids are picking this virus up in school, you know, at lunch, and, you know, in the cafeteria, and are bringing it -- and bringing it home.

And there are a lot of homes in this country that continue to have people who are vulnerable for infection, people who haven't mounted the kind of robust antibody response that you'd expect, maybe because they're a transplant recipient or they're being treated for cancer. So extinguishing the transmission in children is important, not just to protect children, because, thankfully, most children will do OK. You know, we have tragically lost about 550 children to this virus, and that's awful. Most children will do OK, but the children are the vector right now through which this virus is continuing to burn through the United States. So in terms of a public health perspective, extinguishing this in young children is really crucial.

Plus, all kinds of economic reasons. If kids can't be in school because they're out, parents can't work. If parents can't work, that has obvious impact on -- on the economics of the family, and the American economy as a whole. So there are all kinds of reasons to vaccinate children.

HILL: So question for you.

Oh, did we lose Dr. Reiner there? I think we did. We will ask him another time.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

Look, the good news there, big.

HILL: It is.

SCIUTTO: And this looks like it's going to come soon, four to six weeks. We'll keep on top of it.

Other news we're following this morning, the White House is confirming to CNN that President Biden will speak to French President Emmanuel Macron this week over the U.S./U.K. deal with Australia for unclear powered submarines, a deal that disrupted a deal between France and Australia. The French furious over the move. They even recalled their ambassador for the first time from the U.S. in modern times over this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILIPPE ETIENNE, FRENCH AMBASSADOR TO THE U.S. (through translator): A few days before the announcements last Wednesday, we had a meeting of the two ministers of defense and foreign affairs of France and Australia. We absolutely weren't informed of the new course chosen by Australia.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: CNN White House correspondent Arlette Saenz, following the president in Delaware, where he spent the weekend.

So, Arlette, all of this coming just hours, of course, before President Biden is set to address the United Nations General Assembly. That's coming up. There is a lot happening at this point.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there really is. This is a very high stakes week for the president when it comes to his diplomatic efforts. And one of the things that the president will be working on this week is trying to schedule that phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron, trying to ease and smooth over some of those tensions that exist after that security pact that was struck between the U.S., the U.K. and Australia.

Now, I'm told that that phone call between Biden and Macron is not expected to happen today. The scheduling process is still being worked out for that call. But the two men are expected to speak in the coming days.

And you saw the French government recall the U.S. ambassador from the U.S. back to France for consultations regarding what they are seeing as a betrayal from both Australia to the U.S. after that contract led to the loss of a multibillion-dollar submarine contract that the French had with the Australians.

But this all comes as the president is about to turn his sights on his foreign policy and diplomatic agenda. Later today he will be traveling to New York City, where he will be meeting with the head of the U.N., Secretary-General Guterres. And tomorrow the president will be delivering his first speech in front of the United Nations General Assembly as president.

[09:10:01]

Biden had spent time at the U.N. back when he was VP, as a senator as well. But tomorrow his focus will really be on trying to rally the world to address some of the big crises, like the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, also human rights abuses.

But it comes at a very tricky and precarious time for the Biden foreign policy, after people have -- some allies have questioned the U.S., and their decision, the chaotic withdrawal from Afghanistan last month. Also the death of those 13 U.S. service members. And then the admission that they made a mistake with that strike that killed civilians in Afghanistan.

So this is a lot for the president to try to address over the course of the next week. He will also be meeting with leaders hosting the prime minister of the U.K., Boris Johnson, at the White House tomorrow. At the end of the week, he is hosting the quad leaders, that includes the leaders of India, Japan and Australia. And he's trying to get that phone call with Emmanuel Macron on the books to try to smooth over some of those tensions.

HILL: Yes, we'll be waiting for that scheduling update.

Arlette Saenz, appreciate it. Thank you.

Up next, a heartbreaking discovery for the family of Gabby Petito. Authorities believe they found the 22-year-old's remains near Grand Teton National Park. But her fiance now missing. We're live in Wyoming and Florida, next.

SCIUTTO: Plus, the Biden administration is ramping up deportation flights as more than 10,000 migrants wait to be processed at the U.S./Mexico border. The homeland security chief just announced that he is headed to Del Rio, Texas, today to observe the conditions under the bridge there, as you see those pictures, for himself.

Also ahead, new reports that President Trump is looking to attempt to oust Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Will other Republicans get on board? (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:16:12]

HILL: An autopsy is scheduled for tomorrow to confirm the human remains found at Grand Teton National Park are in fact those of missing 22-year-old Gabby Petito. Now, search crews spent the weekend combing over campsites in western Wyoming where that van was last seen.

SCIUTTO: Her fiance, Brian Laundrie, returned to Florida without Petito on September 1st and no one has reported seeing him since last week.

CNN's Leyla Santiago joins us now.

Leyla, investigators, they spent a lot of their weekend focusing on a nature preserve there in Florida, searching for Laundrie, but now they've moved on. Why? And do we know where they're focusing their search now?

LEYLA SANTIAGO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Two very good questions. Two questions that I have asked and we're still waiting for a response on that. But we just heard, just in the last hour or so, from North Port police saying that they believe they have exhausted all avenues when it comes to the search at Carlton Reserve. That is that 25,000-acre area that was quite the challenge over the weekend as we watched ATVs, helicopters, K-9 units go in there, because, according to North Port police, the family, here at this home, where Brian Laundrie and Petito lived together with his family, authorities say that his family said they had not seen him since Tuesday. And the last whereabouts, according to them, they claimed that they had seen him with a hiking bag and he had said he was going hiking in that reserve.

Now, obviously, there is a big push and urgency to try to find him in hopes of getting some more answers. They -- we know that they want to get to the bottom of what exactly happened here, why two people left on a road trip cross-country and only one returned.

Right now, according to police, the family of Brian Laundrie has said that they are concerned for his well-being. It has been pretty quiet here, as we have been here all morning. There was a bit of a larger law enforcement presence last night here at the Laundrie home.

But we're still waiting to find out where this investigation will go. North Port police saying they will continue to work with the FBI. We know where they're not searching, so the question now is, where are they searching?

HILL: Yes, we will continue to follow that. Leyla, I know you'll keep us updated as well. Thank you.

Also want to turn now to Wyoming. Kelly Vaughen is a reporter with our affiliate, KUTV. She's in the Bridger-Teton National Forest.

And, Kelly, we know the autopsy is scheduled for tomorrow, but authorities at this point say they're fairly confident that the remains are, in fact, those of Gabby Petito, Kelly.

KELLY VAUGHEN, : That's right. Not the outcome anybody here wanted. But at least now we know, FBI say, the body, it resembles Gabby. We're going to do -- they're going to do a forensic investigation that will 100 percent confirm it's her. But they were confident enough to publicly console Gabby's family and send their thoughts and prayers to her parents, who are mourning the loss of their daughter.

But the autopsy tomorrow will confirm the identity of the body and it could also give us some insight into the cause of death.

SCIUTTO: Members of the public, they were sharing photos, video. I saw some of this posted online of encounters with that van, perhaps Petito and Laundrie as well. Has that helped investigators?

VAUGHEN: Yes, police said that the public tips and information was extremely useful. We've seen videos, photos coming in of people who thought they saw Gabby, Brian or their van here in this campsite area. The FBI says that was a really helpful resource. But they are asking anyone else with any further information that might have come across Gabby or Brian while they were camping here to still reach out to the FBI tip line because the public has been very helpful in kind of connecting the dots in the case here.

[09:20:12]

SCIUTTO: Goodness. I just feel for her family.

Kelly Vaughen, thanks so much.

Let's speak now about the broader investigation with former Philadelphia Police Commissioner and CNN senior law enforcement analyst Charles Ramsey.

Commissioner Ramsay, always good to have you on.

One question at the top of a lot of folks' minds is, and by the way, you want to be fair to authorities because they're working as best they can through all this, but -- but did -- did authorities and police keep enough of a -- of a watch on Laundrie? He was -- he was a -- not a formal -- still is not a formal suspect, not even that, I believe, a person of interest, but he was home for a long time and now he's gone. I mean do you see mistakes there in the initial police work?

CHARLES RAMSEY, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Well, I mean, apparently they didn't have him under surveillance. Why? I don't know. You know, perhaps they don't think they had enough at the time to keep him under 24-hour surveillance. I mean we'll find all these things out a little later on.

But right now apparently they've given up the search in that one area. They don't believe he's there. And now they're looking elsewhere. It wouldn't be surprising if that was a misdirection, if you will, where he told his family one thing and then he went the opposite direction. But the key right now is going to be the cause of death, the findings of the medical examiner tomorrow to determine what actually happened to her in terms of what killed her.

HILL: And then, obviously, that will -- we will learn, as you point out, so much from that, Commissioner.

As we look at, though, just in dealing -- you know, sort of to Jim's point there, what we do know, or what we've learned in the last couple of days, I should say, is that Brian Laundrie left but his -- his family didn't say anything for days. The public information officer for North Port was with us here on this show on Friday morning and he said very clearly the family had not been cooperative.

When you're dealing with a family that is, you know, not cooperative, in the words of the PIO last week, how much does that hinder things? I mean how much may that have also played a role in us being where we're at this morning?

RAMSEY: Well, it hinders it a great deal. I mean, you know, you want people to be forthcoming if they do have critical information. If this turns out to be a homicide, right now it's probably being carried as a suspicious death investigation, it -- all the steps you would take in a homicide investigation are the same, but until you get that determination from the medical examiner, it's not going to be officially classified as a homicide.

Remember, this body was exposed to the elements for a period of time. Any injuries might not be obvious, gunshot wound, stab wound, things of that nature. So they've got to do a thorough exam.

But if it does turn into a homicide, even a suspicious death, that family could be subpoenaed before a grand jury and compelled to testify. And it may -- it may come to that.

SCIUTTO: Chief Ramsey, we know the initial focus of the search for Laundrie was on this nature reserve in Florida. They're now turning their focus elsewhere. Not clear to the degree they have hard leads at this point. But tell us what's involved in a search now when you're looking for someone like this.

RAMSEY: Well, there's an awful lot involved. I mean, obviously, you're going to be looking at any kind of trail that that information -- that that person may have left. I mean you buy gas. Did you use a credit card? You know, where can he possibly be. You know, if he's still got a cell phone, he pinged a phone, things of that nature. So they'll follow whatever leads they have available to him.

Right now, the two key things right now are -- probably the one key thing is going to be searching that crime scene. The FBI agent in charge mentioned yesterday it's rugged terrain, which makes it very difficult to actually, you know, process that scene, see if they can find any evidence that puts him at that location. Is that where the death actually occurred? Was the body brought there? It's probably not an open field, because he described it as rugged terrain, which makes it a little more difficult. Then the second part, of course, is finding him. So those are the two

key things that right now they're focusing on, I would imagine.

HILL: You talk about the trail that -- that Brian Laundrie may have left, whether it was using his cell phone, using a credit card, perhaps being caught on a surveillance camera somewhere. We know that some of -- you know, some of that trail, perhaps on his way back to Florida, was certainly in the time of late August into September, may have really helped authorities. There's been a lot made of all the public tips that came in. I mean this is where social media really can be an important tool for an investigation.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

RAMSEY: Yes, there's no question about that. And right now, I mean, he's very recognizable. I mean his face has been plastered over television everywhere. So it's going to be difficult for him to go into complete hiding. And, hopefully, someone calls and says, hey, I saw a guy that looks a lot like the one you're looking for and here's where I saw him. And so they may have gotten some of that kind of information, which is why they called off the search.

[09:25:02]

They're not going to make everything public. I mean bad guys watch TV, too. And so they're not going to -- they're not going to really, you know, say a whole lot. But they've got some information that we aren't aware of, if they called off that search. We don't even know if this guy's alive. I mean it's -- you know, or if he killed himself or what have you. But assuming he's still alive, they're doing everything they possibly can to track him right now. So you got a double focus on him, and then, of course, that scene, and finding out what actually caused her death.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Commissioner Charles Ramsey, always appreciate your insight. Good to see you. Thank you.

RAMSEY: Thank you.

HILL: Up next, a blow to Democrats' plans to address immigration reform. The Senate parliamentarian says they can't include it in their sweeping budget bill.

SCIUTTO: And we are moments away from the opening bell on Wall Street. Dow futures, they're looking bleak as the Federal Reserve is set to begin a two-day meeting tomorrow. Investors worried the Central Bank will start pulling away from economic stimulus to address rising inflation. Worries about the delta variant continue to plague the markets as well. The Dow off more than 2 percent so far this month.

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