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Virginia Heads to the Polls; New York City Votes for New Mayor; Democrats Meeting to Discuss Biden Agenda Items; CDC Meets to Consider Pfizer Vaccine for Kids; Air Force Vaccine Deadline is Today. Aired 9- 9:30a ET

Aired November 02, 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]

LAURA COATES, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: And the race of the victim. And so this is a concerning issue the Supreme Court has dealt with time and time again about having jurors who are representative of the community.

But, remember, the Boston bomber, that was a case where the judge said there was not enough about screening and that now ended up on appeal in front of the Supreme Court. So we have that possibility as well.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Two incredibly important trials.

Laura Coates, thank you so much for that.

COATES: Thanks.

KEILAR: CNN's coverage continues right now.

ERICA HILL, CNN ANCHOR: A good Tuesday morning. I'm Erica Hill.

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Jim Sciutto.

We are watching as any moment President Biden is expected to announce his administration's most aggressive rules yet when it comes to slashing planet warming methane emissions. He is on his final day at the United Nations Climate Summit in Glasgow. This announcement comes as the White House is looking for ways to achieve the president's goal of cutting U.S. greenhouse emissions by half by the end of this decade. It's ambitious. And as it looks for ways to combat growing skepticism abroad on the U.S. commitment to climate change.

HILL: That proposed new rule coming just a day after moderate Senator Joe Manchin raised doubts about his support of President Biden's social safety net package, which, of course, contains historic investments in combatting climate change. The West Virginia senator says he wants greater clarity about the impact the plan will have on the country's economy and the national debt, while also warning House progressives that holding the bipartisan infrastructure bill hostage won't get him to support -- won't get his support for the spending bill.

SCIUTTO: The continuing delays in Washington over two key pieces of President Biden's agenda prompting worries that Democrats could feel the impact at the polls. This as millions of Americans are set to vote in key races today, setting the tone, perhaps, for next year's midterms, especially in Virginia, where Democrat Terry McAuliffe finds himself in a surprising neck and neck race for governor with Republican Glenn Youngkin.

HILL: And let's begin there this morning.

CNN Washington correspondent Sunlen Serfaty at a polling site this morning in Arlington, Virginia.

So, Sunlen, we know there is a major focus on this. A lot of talk about whether this race is actually a bellwether for 2022. What were these two candidates saying in their final pitches to voters?

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Erica, as you know, this is a very, very close race. And the candidates know that they need people to get out here and vote today.

And what we saw from each of the candidates in making their closing arguments was largely them staying true to the core part of their strategy. For Democrat Terry McAuliffe, that was all about defining this race, casting Youngkin, the Republican candidate, as a proxy for Donald Trump, tying him to Donald Trump, even falsely claiming last night on the campaign trail that Youngkin was doing an event with Trump. That was a reference to a tele-town hall that Trump dialed into that Youngkin was not on.

And for Glenn Youngkin, his strategy has largely been to keep Trump at arm's length, keep some distance from the former president's endorsement, focusing on local issues like education. And this was, in large part, what we saw from both of the candidates last night, campaigning late into the evening.

Here's just a taste of their closing message to voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TERRY MCAULIFFE (D), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Guess how Glenn Youngkin is finishing his campaign? He is doing an event with Donald Trump here in Virginia.

I'm here with you, and they've got Trump over there.

GLENN YOUNGKIN (R), VIRGINIA GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: This is about Virginia. And let me tell you, Terry McAuliffe versus Virginia, Virginia wins every day of the week.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: Now, we are outside a polling location in Arlington, Virginia. This is a suburb just outside of Washington, D.C. And the polling director here reports that in just the few hours that these polls have been open since 6:00 a.m. Eastern, they've seen over 150 people come in, in person, and cast their ballots. That is an uptick from what they've seen in recent years. We've also -- and we've seen a steady stream of people coming and

going. We've also seen people drop in their mail-in ballots at this official ballot drop box. Certainly this area very key to Terry McAuliffe, but also an area where Glenn Youngkin could pluck some moderate independent voters. That is part of his strategy.

Voting just starting now, Erica, but many, many more hours to go.

HILL: Yes, that's for sure.

Sunlen Serfaty with the latest from Arlington, thank you.

In New York, Democrat Eric Adams is poised to win the mayor's seat over Republican Curtis Sliwa, looking at some of the latest polling, after winning a tight race to become the Democratic nominee. Adams is now a key figure in how the party is looking to move forward.

SCIUTTO: CNN's senior national correspondent Miguel Marquez following all of this from Brooklyn, New York.

[09:05:01]

So, Miguel, in a time when Democrats have, in many races, been tough on police and policing, Eric Adams, himself a former police captain, he's setting really a much different tone.

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it's the vegan ex-cop against the founder of the Guardian Angels, who's a cat lover as well. So a typical New York politics.

They are both going after the meat and potato political messages on crime, on housing, on homelessness, all the big issues facing New York. Look, and for a Democrat in New York not to win, that would be a stunning reversal from what everybody expects right now.

But I can tell you, at least in this one place, in downtown Brooklyn, at Brooklyn Borough Hall, which should be a very, very busy voting precinct, it's not. There's very, very few voters here -- who have been here so far today. This is probably the most that we've seen all of these stations are people who are filling out their ballots, putting the ink in those little circles on each one and then they slide them into those machines over there where the votes are actually counted. They've only had about a hundred or so, maybe a little over a hundred now, voters come in, in the last three hours in this one precinct. There were three different election districts in this one room. It should be a lot busier. But it's not. But we will see.

We don't -- what we don't know is how many early votes have come in across the state and across New York City. We don't know how many absentee votes. But New York City, heavily Democratic, the was the state, the city even more so. The expectation is, is the Democrat will win, but we won't know for several more hours.

Back to you guys.

SCIUTTO: Wait for the votes. Miguel Marquez there in Brooklyn, thanks so much.

Joining us now to talk about all this, Christine Quinn, she's former New York City Council speaker, and CNN national political reporter Maeve Reston.

Good to have you both here.

Christine, I wonder if I could begin with you.

Eric Adams, he ran on a pro-police platform at a time when New York, like many other cities in the country, has an uptick in crime. I wonder, is there a template there for Democrats heading into the midterms and going forward, a more centrist sort of path to election?

CHRISTINE QUINN, FORMER SPEAKER, NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL: (INAUDIBLE) officer but risen to the rank of police captain. He has a particularly unique voice and a unique set of experiences. So it's only a template, I think, if you have a messenger who really is steeped in the issues of policing and diversity, him not just being a police officer, but a police officer of color. So you need somebody who has walked the walk, not just talked the talk.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Maeve, when it comes to that message, right, whether it be pro- police, whether it be defund the police, there is a lot of gray area there. And it seems the Democratic Party itself has had a really hard time harnessing what they want that message to be. It's not just New York City where we're seeing this, you know, sort of front and center as one of the issues. It's really playing out in a number of races across the country. How closely do you think Democrats are watching that to see what is and isn't working?

MAEVE RESTON, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER: So closely, Erica. And as you said, it's -- it's -- Democrats have had a really difficult time even controlling this message because Republicans have repeatedly argued that Democrats all over the country are trying to defund the police, and that's not actually the case. And where you're seeing this really play out is not just New York, but also a lot of these other mayoral races that we are looking at today. Whether it's Atlanta, where Kasim Reed is going -- is trying to replace outgoing Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, to go for another term as mayor, but talking about hiring 750 police officers, you know, and going up against more progressive candidates who are trying to balance that message, talking about both police reform measures, but also the need to sort of restore a lot of morale in the police department, and also to build the ranks back up.

You're also seeing that -- that race -- that kind of debate play out in Buffalo, certainly, where India Walton could be the first socialist mayor elected in, I believe it's almost 60 years. And she actually already beat four-term incumbent Byron Brown during the primary season. But he is now going up against her again as a write-in candidate and has argued that her policies on policing are too liberal, would put the city's residents in danger. And, of course, the most fascinating place where this is playing out is in Minneapolis, where, you know, the death of George Floyd has completely shaped the debate. You have Jacob Fry, the mayor there, being challenged by a number of progressive candidates, including Sheila Nezhad and Kate Knuth, who both have argued that he -- this should be a referendum on his handling of policing.

[09:10:05]

And question two on the ballot in Minneapolis is asking the voters to decide whether to completely dismantle the police department, replace it with a Department of Public Safety, and just completely reimagine the police department there. There would still be officers, but a revamp. So, it's a fascinating thing to watch tonight.

SCIUTTO: Christine, I wonder if you could turn your New York political eye to the state of Virginia right now. Much tighter race than expected going in. This is a state that Biden won by ten points. Now it seems to be neck and neck.

We've talked about how Democratic candidates move to the center. Can you argue that Glenn Youngkin there has done the same as a Republican here, not embracing Trump, as many other Republicans have done, kind of walking a finer line. Is that a template for Republicans in other races around the country?

QUINN: I think it's definitely a template for Republicans in states that are purple states, or very purple -- more, you know, blueish purple states because in those states like Virginia, if you throw yourself in bed with Donald Trump, you're going to turn voters off as opposed to the way he has handled it, which has been much more --

SCIUTTO: Oops, I think we froze up there.

RESTON: Much more nuanced and with Glenn Youngkin trying to keep his distance, certainly from Terry McAuliffe. And that has worked for him by not alienating those Trump voters, but also having enough of a moderate streak there in some of his messaging about some other issues to draw, and the independents will be so important in this race.

SCIUTTO: Yes.

HILL: Certainly one we will all be watching closely throughout the day and, of course, tonight as the results come in.

Maeve Reston, always good to see you. Christine Quinn, great to have you. We lost her at the end there, but good to have her with us.

And just a reminder, be sure to stay with us right here on CNN as we cover election night in America. The stakes are high, as we've just been talking about. Our special live coverage starts tonight at 6:00 p.m. Eastern.

SCIUTTO: All right, other big story in politics happening right now, Democrats are meeting behind closed doors to discuss both bills key to President Biden's agenda. This as Senator Joe Manchin says that he will not support the $1.75 trillion social safety net expansion bill unless there is greater clarity about the impact it will have on the country's national debt and the economy. This is -- this bill are often scored by the CBO. We'll see what those numbers come back like.

HILL: Meantime, here's what Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said earlier this morning about the state of the Biden agenda.

Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG, TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: You know, a few days ago I said that we're the closest we've ever been. I think this morning we are closer still. Obviously, we want to see this literally signed, sealed and delivered. But what's clear is that there is enormous momentum behind this legislation.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY": You're very confident the president can get Joe Manchin on board? Is that the read?

BUTTIGIEG: Absolutely. Very confident that this can get through the House and the Senate. And, I'll tell you, the moment that it does, obviously, my department and others are ready.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HILL: CNN Capitol Hill reporter Melanie Zanona following the latest developments for us here on Capitol Hill.

So, Senator Manchin's comments yesterday came out and then, I have to say, the reaction may not have been what a lot of people expected. What are we hearing this morning?

MELANIE ZANONA, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER: Yes, you're absolutely right, Democrats essentially responded with a shrug. I mean initially it looked like Joe Manchin was about to blow up the entire Democratic agenda. He came out of this press conference and said he is willing to vote no if he doesn't support the final product. He also took a swipe at progressives for delaying the vote on the infrastructure bill last week.

But many Democrats are downplaying his remarks. They say this is nothing new. This is where Manchin has been all along. Even if his tone was somewhat surprising and defiant. And perhaps most notably, progressives now say they will vote for both the infrastructure bill and the social safety net bill, even without iron clad assurances from Joe Manchin or Kyrsten Sinema.

Just take a listen to what Pramila Jayapal, the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, had to say moments ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): I've told everybody, in the final days of a negotiation, tempers flare, people say things that they feel. And it's real. Just like Joe Manchin did a press conference, our members are frustrated.

But what I am saying is, we are finally at the place we've been asking for, demanding over the last several months, which is two bills moving together in the House. And we'll get them both done.

My hope and belief in talking to the Senate majority leader, talking to other senators, talking to the president, is that the Senate will move this forward very quickly. Hopefully we can get it done before Thanksgiving.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZANONA: So this is a huge reversal for progressives. And it also clears a major hurdle to passage of Joe Biden's economic agenda.

[09:15:05]

But, there's still a number of obstacles that they have to overcome. The first one being, they still haven't finished writing the bill. They're still haggling over a number of policy provisions from prescription drug prices, to immigration. And moderates also want to see an official cost estimate before they vote on the final bill. It's unclear whether that can happen anytime soon.

But, look, Democratic leaders are still saying they can hold a vote potentially as early as Wednesday evening or Thursday. But as we've learned, the timing around here could always slip.

Jim. Erica.

HILL: Yes, let's -- as Jim has pointed out, let's ban the word deadline.

SCIUTTO: Yes. I mean the best we can do is say we'll see, and we'll see.

HILL: Yes.

SCIUTTO: Melanie Zanona, on The Hill, thanks so much.

ZANONA: Thank you.

SCIUTTO: Any moment now President Biden will lay out a new proposal to reduce methane emissions here in the U.S. But are world leaders really doing enough to address the climate crisis? We're going to be live at the global summit in Scotland.

HILL: Plus, CDC advisers meeting today and they'll talk about, vote on Pfizer's vaccine for younger children. So, just how soon could that shot be available? That's ahead.

And a court in Georgia now in its 11th day of jury selection in the trial for the men accused of killing Ahmaud Arbery. The defense attorney just complained there aren't enough, and I'm quoting here, bubbas to choose from.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:20:44]

SCIUTTO: All right, so a big step in the pandemic. This morning, members of the CDC's Vaccine Advisory Committee will meet to consider recommending officially the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for children ages five to 11. A liaison to the committee tells CNN that he expects members will, quote, overwhelmingly approve it when they vote this afternoon. That's big news.

HILL: It is big news. If CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky then signs off today, parents could begin scheduling those shots for their kids this week.

Joining us now to discuss, CNN's senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.

So, Elizabeth, what specifically is the advisory committee looking at today?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Erica, what they're going to look at is safety and efficacy data. We've been told that this vaccine and the clinical trial for children ages five to 11 was very safe. Let's take a look. Let's talk a bit about the efficacy. It was shown to be about 91 percent effective at keeping kids from getting sick with COVID-19.

Now, interestingly, children in this clinical trial, they were actually not given the full dose that adolescents and adults have been getting, instead they've been -- they were given about -- they were given one-third of the dose.

Now, if this committee, and as you mentioned these -- this committee of advisers, they are expected to sign off on this, if they sign off on this, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky, she could actually act pretty quickly. She has acted quite quickly once these recommendations are made. We may even get a signoff from her possibly as soon as this evening. So that means that shots could be going into arms, little arms, young arms, later this week.

Erica. Jim.

SCIUTTO: So, can you explain for folks watching what the White House plan is for rollout and how it will be different from the rollout that we saw for shots for adults?

COHEN: So, the rollout that we saw back in January -- or December and January, for adults, was a bit chaotic. And we have to do remember, that was a different administration. So this administration, the Biden administration, is different. And they've learned from what they saw the Trump administration do. They've been planning this for quite some time, even though they haven't had the official signoff. They sort of got to work planning it. And so their emphasis, unlike with the adults where you saw a lot of mass vaccination sites, for example, in stadiums, instead, they're emphasizing more pediatricians offices, and schools, children's hospitals. There's every reason to think that this should go quite smoothly because, you know, pediatricians offices, they give vaccinations every day. That's their bread and butter. They know how to order them, that sort of chain of ordering has already been well established for, you know, decades and decades now. So there's every reason to think that this will not be the chaos that we saw with adults.

HILL: We will cross our fingers for that.

COHEN: That's right.

HILL: Elizabeth Cohen, appreciate it. Thank you.

COHEN: Thanks.

HILL: Well, today, the Air Force is the first branch of the military to hit its deadline for troops and civilian employees to be fully vaccinated or to have an approved exemption.

SCIUTTO: It's a lot of progress, actually fairly quick progress. According to the latest data, more than 485,000 Air Force active duty reserve and National Guard members are fully or partially vaccinated. A defense official confirmed that about 12,000 airmen, a relatively small percentage, remain unvaccinated. Now military leaders are deciding what to do about those who are, in effect, refusing orders here.

CNN Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr joins us now.

So, what happens to those remaining few who decided not to take the vaccine?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning to you.

Well, what happens is they are facing the fact that they are refusing what the military says is a lawful order. Remember, military people get all kinds of mandatory vaccinations so they can deploy overseas, so they can work.

Right now, the total active duty forces you mentioned is about at 97 percent. Most of the military services are in the 90 percent plus range. But when you look at somebody like the Air Force, 12,000 unvaccinated.

So what are they facing? They could get punishment. They could get -- they could eventually be dismissed from the service. But they will get counseling. They could face limited travel, limited assignments, not being able to deploy, all of the so-called disciplinary measures.

[09:25:01]

They're up to the individual services and units to administer to their people.

You know, the reason it's so important to the military, of course, is the public health, the U.S. military lives and works in towns and communities across the country. So public health is job number one here.

But for the military, they also want to have as high a vaccination rate as possible. They don't want to have it be a readiness problem. They don't want to face the prospect of ships being out of commission, airfields not being able to function, Army units not being able to deploy. So, all the indications are it will continue to be a full out effort to make sure needles go into arms of the U.S. military.

Erica. Jim.

HILL: We'll be watching.

Barbara Starr, appreciate it. Thank you.

Just ahead, President Biden set to make the case for the world's democracies to take the lead on the climate crisis. The administration rolling out a brand-new plan today. We're live in Scotland.

SCIUTTO: And we're moments away from the opening bell on Wall Street. Futures are virtually flat this morning. This after record high for all three major indices. The Federal Reserve kicks off its two-day meeting today. They are expected to discuss bond buybacks and, this is key, inflation, two issues that investors are keeping a close eye on. We're going to bring you the latest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)