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White House Circulating Memo Laying Out the Political Advantages for Supporting Both Bipartisan Deal and Reconciliation; FBI Returns to Laundrie Home to Collect DNA Matching Items; Pfizer to Ask in Days for Vaccine Authorization for Kids Under 12. Aired 10-10:30a ET

Aired September 27, 2021 - 10:00   ET

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

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[10:00:00]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN NEWSROOM: A very good Monday morning to you. I'm Jim Sciutto.

ERICA HILL, CNN NEWSROOM: And I'm Erica Hill.

New this morning, the White House now circulating a memo trying to convince President Biden's own party to support the bipartisan infrastructure deal and his $3.5 billion budget proposal, both of which, of course, critical to his agenda. One Democratic congresswoman calling this a, quote, week from hell as lawmakers face key votes on both of those bills as well as, let's not forget, the looming debt ceiling debate deadline.

SCIUTTO: Yes. It's a big week for Democrats, possibly make or break. Today, we're going to see a test vote in the Senate on the debt limit as well as government funding, Congress working to stave off a shutdown. If borrowing is not increased by Friday this week, the U.S. could default on its debt, spelling disaster for millions of Americans. That said, Congress has been up to the brink many times before and it does not go over it.

We were also supposed to see a House vote on infrastructure today, but Speaker Pelosi forced to delay that until Thursday. It gives her just a few days to make a deal with progressives on that larger spending plan, they're saying. The two have got to come together.

HILL: Yes. CNN Chief Congressional Correspondent Manu Raju is on Capitol Hill with the very latest. So, Manu, the White House pointing out this memo the advantages of supporting both infrastructure and reconciliation. What is the latest for members on the Hill this morning?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. They're expecting a real sales push, a very strong push by the Democratic leaders and the White House to get all members in line behind these two packages.

Now, that first bill, that infrastructure bill, which was expected initially to have a vote today, now is going to happen on Thursday. All it needs is a majority passage in the House. That becomes law. But the Democrats simply do not have the votes at the moment because those progressive Democrats are holding out, saying they will not support that plan until that larger plan to expand the social safety net can move forward.

Now, that bill, that larger plan, is not even close to getting an agreement yet between the moderates and progressives in the Democratic caucus. So, I'm told by a source familiar with the matter that what the goal is here, to try to reach an outline of a deal, a framework agreement by Thursday on that larger plan among some of the key constituencies within the House and Senate Democratic caucus.

That is still a very heavy lift to get to that point on Thursday. Nevertheless, the message coming from Democratic members over the last day or so, they believe that the caucuses can come together even if it's uncertain how to get there. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DEBBIE DINGELL (D-MI): But the fact of the matter is failure is not an option.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We have to compromise.

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D-NY): This will be a big week, but Democrats are once again going to rise to the occasion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to come together.

REP. BARBARA LEE (D-CA): We're on the same page. We're now trying to find consensus, trying to unify.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So, the question is can they get there. The congressional progressive caucus, I am told, is having a conference call this afternoon to try to figure out their strategy and then the larger House Democratic caucus will meet behind closed doors tonight.

And one to have messages that will be made to the members is you are either with the president or you're against the president, I'm told from a source familiar with these discussions. Can that message work particularly for those Democrats in swing districts, districts that Donald Trump carried in the last two elections? That is the big question because there is no margin for error, just three Democratic volts they can afford to lose in the House if all Republicans vote against it, and they can't afford to lose any in the Senate for that larger bill. Guys?

HILL: So much at stake here. Manu, thank you.

SCIUTTO: Yes. Ro Khanna told last hour they haven't even got a number from moderate Democrats on the larger budget deal. We'll be watching.

President Biden's make-or-break week could have a significant impact, not just in 2022 but in elections before that date and after. If Democrats fail to pass this legislation in the coming days and weeks, they will likely lose the chance to do so before the midterms.

The state of Virginia is about to provide the clearest preview so far of 2022. Democrat Terry McAuliffe and Republican Glenn Youngkin will face off in a marquee governor's race this November. And get this, all 100 seats in the state's house of delegates up for grabs at the same time as well.

All right, so, for big picture, let's bring CNN Senior Data Reporter Harry Enten and Larry Sabato, he's Director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia.

[10:05:05]

And, by the way, Harry and Larry has a new comedy act, which will be appearing at a stand-up show near you. Seriously, it should be.

Harry, last year Biden won Virginia. He won it by ten points. Polls there today show a much closer margin in this governor's race. What are you seeing and what does that mean?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: I think you hit it right on the head. The polls are very, very tight. They are within the margin of error. You know, there was a Washington Post poll that came out earlier this month. What we saw among likely voters was that Terry McAuliffe was up by three percentage points, but, again, that result is within the margin of error.

But what's also interesting to me when you look at that poll is you see that among registered voters, McAuliffe's lead was actually wider. And this to me suggests some form of an enthusiazing gap whereby Democrats are less enthusiastic than Republicans.

But the key thing to keep in mind about Virginia, the reason we're watching it so much is that it's a pretty good barometer of what we might see next year. If you look back since 1977, what you see is that 8 of 11 times the party that won the governorship of Virginia went on to gain seats in the House of Representatives in the following midterm. And with Virginia being such a blue state these days, if Democrats can't win in Virginia, I have to ask, where can they win?

SCIUTTO: Yes. Larry, a good indicator of the growing Democratic coalition to date in Virginia has been coalition of African-Americans but also white voters with a college degree. Do you see based on the number that you're seeing that providing a backstop for Democrats in the governor's race?

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR POLITICS AT UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: It will if they turn out. That's the basic problem. As Harry mentioned, there's a big gap in many of the polls and also the private polls the candidates are using between the general registered voter population and the likely voters. And right now, Republicans are more enthused.

Now, this may turn out to be May, just like the California recall election, when Democrats got energized right at the end and delivered a victory to Gavin Newsom. Virginia isn't nearly as blue as California, and there aren't a lot of excess Democrats who can't turn out if Democrats are going to win.

But, you know, we're five weeks away, a lot can happen. The polls four years ago in this governor's race showed a dead heat, you know, a toss-up. So the Democrat ended up winning by nine percentage points, a near landslide.

SCIUTTO: Wow, that's an interesting indicator.

Okay, another influence can often be that the president's approval rating in a race like this, and President Biden's approval has fallen off a cliff and it's down, frankly, in some of the polls to Trump-like levels. Harry, tell us what numbers you're seeing. And I'm curious, historically, can presidents bounce back from a dip like this?

ENTEN: I mean, they can, but the question is how do they? And, you know, at this point, I think one of the problems that President Biden is facing is that voters just don't think he's done very much in office. You know, there was a good NBC News poll last month and what you essentially saw was, they asked, has President Biden accomplished much in office. And look at this, 58 percent said only some or very little. Only 40 percent said a great deal or fair amount -- or very little, right, great deal, fair amount.

And I think is so important here is that, right now, nationally, we're seeing that enthusiasm gap as well, right? So, if you look at the generic ballot, what you see is that among those voters who says they are extremely enthusiastic or very enthusiastic to vote next year, you see that Republicans are leading up by four points. Among those who are just somewhat or non-enthusiastic, look at that, Democrats ahead by six points. So, Joe Biden and the Democrats have to give Democrats a reason to turn out both nationally and in Virginia.

SCIUTTO: So, Larry, put this infrastructure debate into that context, because the Democratic message in 2020 for Biden and others was, listen, we're competent, we're going to get big stuff done. And we're in September here and, really, you've gotten COVID relief, but these other priorities have been sitting on the shelf. How important is this week not just for the president but for Democratic lawmakers down the ballot?

SABATO: Well, extremely important. The truth is I think they will compromise because they have to. The alternative is electoral disaster. And usually politicians when faced we electoral disaster will do what they never thought they could do, compromise more than they had intended to.

SCIUTTO: Well, I'll bet you that very line might be in this memo circulating from the Biden White House and Democratic lawmakers this week. Harry Enten, Larry Sabato, thanks so much to both of you.

ENTEN: Thank you. See you at a comedy hour near you.

SCIUTTO: I'll buy tickets. Today, the Senate is set to hold a key procedural vote on a temporary government funding bill that could also suspend the debt ceiling.

HILL: But, and this is a very important but, of course, Republicans planning to block that vote just days before the government could run out of money.

CNN Chief Business Correspondent Christine Romans joining us now.

[10:10:01]

So, as we take a look at this, Christine, break down these numbers for us. Just how would this directly impact the American people?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Look, if you don't raise the debt ceiling, the government can't borrow money. And if it can't borrow money, it can't run to the extent it does right now. So, that means the Treasury Department would have to start picking and choosing which bills to pay. That means some 50 million seniors could get an IOU instead of a social security check. It means the troops wouldn't get paid. They would also get an IOU. You go down the list, you could also have a child tax credit, that monthly child tax credit wouldn't go into the bank accounts of people, as has been happening since July. So you would see immediately real families would feel the impact of this.

Now, conventional wisdom is they're going to somehow figure this out, but no one knows exactly how. And there's just a lot going on in D.C. right now. You're going to -- eyes glazed over process and sausage making this week but every one of these things, you guys, affects real people and families. I mean, essentially, it is hell week for policymakers but it's kitchen table economics at the core of it. I mean, you look at the $3.5 trillion Biden build back better, that's everything from Pell Grants to child care to community college, free community college, seniors getting hearing aids. I mean, there are so many things in here.

And then there's infrastructure as well that's also out there. There's bipartisan support for that but it's hanging out in this process as well. That's roads and bridges and electric vehicle charging stations. Really, this week, literally, your family budget is being legislated in Washington, guys.

HILL: Yes. I don't think we can underscore enough just how critical this week is. Christine, I always appreciate it. Thank you.

Well, still to come, the latest in the search for Brian Laundrie. What FBI investigators hope to learn by examining samples of his DNA.

Plus, could younger children get the Pfizer COVID vaccine in time for the holidays? Details on the timeline for FDA emergency use authorization.

SCIUTTO: And just in, the FBI releasing worrying statistics about violence crime across the country, murder rate up nearly 20 percent last year in 2020. We'll discuss how the pandemic factored into that. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[10:15:00]

SCIUTTO: In Florida now, FBI agents have returned to the family home of Brian Laundrie, Gabby Petito's missing fiance. He disappeared nearly two weeks ago now. The family's attorney says the FBI took some of his personal items for DNA matching.

HILL: This as a memorial service for Petito was held on Sunday in Long Island. Gabby's father honoring her as, quote, the most amazing person he's ever met, telling more to be inspired by her life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH PETITO, GABBY PETITO'S FATHER: If there's a trip you guys want to take, take it now. Do it now while you got the time. If there's a relationship that you're in that might not be the best thing for you, leave it now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Here with us now is Robert Bianchi. He's a former lead prosecutor and the host of the Law and Crime Network. Good to have you on this morning.

ROBERT BIANCHI, FORMER HEAD PROSECUTOR FOR MORRIS COUNTY, NEW JERSEY: Great to be here, Jim.

SCIUTTO: So, tell us the significance of the latest FBI's step here, taking personal belongings for DNA matching, we're told. What exactly are they likely to match and with what intention?

BIANCHI: Jim, I have a little bit of a different spin on this having conducted these investigations. So, first off, I was surprised they didn't take DNA in the first place. The DNA can help establish a timeline by comparing it with what I can tell you are thousands of pieces of evidence that may be DNA-related, so, timeline, timeline, timeline as far as the investigation is concerned and trying to find him.

But I have a little bit of a different feeling here. Where this area is where he was last seen is known to be some very rough terrain. These investigators and police and FBI agents are waist high in waters that's infested with alligators and snakes. It's also a location where it's been known that people do nefarious things by burying bodies, accidents and things of that nature. And I have to wonder whether they found some sort of material in those swamps and they need a DNA sample to see if there's a match. And, interestingly, the family finally cooperated with regard to turning this over.

Something in the back of my Spidey sense says this could be something to try and see if there's a match to body parts found in that location.

HILL: Yes, a little more to it. It could be about remains. As we look at this, we know that there is always what we're hearing publicly and what is known behind the scenes, for obvious reasons, because you don't want to jeopardize an investigation by putting too much out there, especially if someone you're looking for could be watching.

That being said, I know you've made the point that some of what's been shared publicly you think has sort of put law enforcement at a disadvantage. How?

BIANCHI: Erica, I gave these press conferences when we had, quote/unquote, persons of interest, which is a fiction. They are a suspect. And any criminal defense where here is a client, as a person of interest or a suspect, the way you handle a domestic violence potential homicide is you want to bring that person in because that person has an incentive to want to speak so that they aren't considered to be a suspect. And you can give vital and crucial data you have that the suspect doesn't have.

But when you're out on T.V. and you're calling him a person of interest and the lawyer for the family is out there also kind of excoriating him, they created a toxic environment for police to get statements.

[10:20:09]

And the failure to do surveillance, whether it's poll cameras or drones or other things at the house to see whether or not people are coming in and out of it and whether evidence is being destroyed is shocking to me. So, in a certain sense, what they did was create -- in my humble opinion, created a toxic environment where he would not only talk but now you increase the potential he'd flee, and look at what we got.

SCIUTTO: The Laundrie family has a lawyer and did so fairly early. There have been questions about their cooperation with police. I wonder what your thoughts are, delays, for instance, in telling the police exactly when he got there, when he left. Where do you think they stand legally now?

BIANCHI: You know, you have to understand there's always two sides to this equation. And as a prosecutor, I know the parents are going to be protective of their child. Again, that's why it was so important to create an environment of, hey, can you help us out as opposed to your son is a person of interest here.

But the family under Florida law has no obligation to cooperate with law enforcement. And just from a practical dynamics of lawyering -- and this is why it's so important, prosecutors have to know how defense attorneys act. If someone came to me as a defense attorney and said, my son is a person of interest in a suspected potential homicide, I'm telling the family and I'm telling the suspect to not speak to the police, to exercise their right to remain silent. That is the basic advice that's been given ever since the Constitution was formed.

So, the parents, so long as they're not making affirmative misrepresentations, there's also an exception under Florida law that actually protects parents if they're involved in any kind of a cover- up. That's a problem under Florida law for law enforcement to prove a case, for prosecutors to prove a case. And you also have to prove that they deceived or did something that was inappropriate knowing their son actually committed a crime.

HILL: Bob, based on your experience, one thing that had a few people scratching their head over the weekend, myself included, the Dog the Bounty Hunter, showing up. I'm just curious, your gut reaction to that. Is that helpful or is this even more of a distraction?

BIANCHI: It's a distraction, Erica. You don't need this. This is the kind of thing that drives you crazy when you're doing an investigation. You're trying to do things by the book, you're trying to do all sorts of data management, which is going to be very difficult here. They've got information, tips, leads coming on. You have to make sure your detectives and agents know what other people are gathering any information. And then you have got Dog the Bounty Hunter coming in, taking up media attention, making a media spectacle of it. Trust me, the U.S. marshals, the FBI, and the police are far better and have more sophistication at catching Laundrie than does Dog the Bounty Hunter.

It's a very unfortunate development of the case that they're now going to have to deal with.

SCIUTTO: Bob Bianchi, thanks so much.

BIANCHI: My pleasure, guys.

SCIUTTO: Coming up, CNN goes inside an Atlanta hospital where the impact of COVID is having tragic consequences for other non-COVID patients.

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[10:25:00]

SCIUTTO: So, some good news on COVID. It could be just a matter of weeks now before children under the age of 12 are eligible to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

HILL: Pfizer's CEO saying the company will submit its data to the FDA in a matter of days to seek emergency use authorization of its vaccine for kids ages 5 to 11. He went on to say, if that authorization is granted, the company is ready to meet the demand.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALBERT BOURLA, CEO, PFIZER: If they approve it, we would be ready with our manufacturing to provide this new formulation of the vaccine because the vaccine that the kids will receive, which is 5 to 11, it is a different formulation, it is almost -- not almost. It's one-third of the dose that we are giving to the rest of the population.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SCIUTTO: CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen following. So, this is part of a process. Pfizer has got to submit its data, take a look at the data, make sure everything is okay. Give us your best estimate of the timeline that follows that.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So, Jim, it is so hard to tell. The only way that we can even maybe get a hint of what could happen is to look at what happened when Pfizer applied for emergency use authorization at the end of last year for its COVID-19 vaccine for adults. And maybe it will follow along that same timeline.

So, let's take a look at what happened with adults. Pfizer made that final submission on November 20th of last year where they formally applied for their emergency use authorization, and they received the emergency use authorization December 11th. So it was a matter of three weeks. Now, we don't know, it could be longer or it could be shorter for children, but that gives you a bit of a ballpark feeling.

And what the FDA is going to be looking for is safety data and efficacy data. Is this safe for children, is it effective? Pfizer has already said that their data on more than 2,000 children shows that it is safe and it got a robust antibody response, the FDA will also want to know -- well, the antibody response, that's good, but we also want to know did it actually decrease the chances that a child would become sick with COVID-19. So, the FDA and the board of external advisers will be looking at that as well.

[10:30:02]

Jim, Erica?

HILL: Lots to look out, lots of parents waiting for any update that we can get. Elizabeth --