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Republican Victory In Virginia Deals Blow To Democrats, Biden; Pelosi Adds Paid Leave Back Into $1.75 Trillion Bill, A Thorn For Moderates; Jayapal: "Excited" To See Paid Leave Added Back To Bill; Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) Discusses Paid Leave Added Back To $1.75 Trillion Bill, Continuing Bill Negotiations; Kids 5 To 11 Receive First Doses Of Pfizer COVID Vaccine; Today, Supreme Court Hears Arguments In NY Concealed Carry Case. Aired 2:30-3p ET
Aired November 03, 2021 - 14:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:30:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): Failure to deliver. Congress has to deliver. Window's closing. We have no more time. We need to get it done. And as one who will be running for re-election in 2022, I need results that I can show the American people that Congress can deliver.
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And what you saw last night, do you think voters were sending the message that the party should pare back on the very progressive policies they're pushing now?
SEN. JOE MANCHIN (D-WV): You know, I'm not going to speak on the message that was sent. I just -- I just think the message that was really sent. If we're going to do something, let's take time and do it right. Let's make sure that people know what's in it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RAJU: So a number of concerns that Joe Manchin has raised over the last day or so.
It looks like we're getting Pramila Jayapal is now speaking to the cameras, right?
Let's take a listen.
REP. PRAMILA JAYAPAL (D-WA): -- final agreements. And how incredible that we got something on prescription drug pricing negotiation. I think that's one of the most popular pieces of this package.
And again, it's about economic relief for middle-class families, working class families who can't afford prescription drugs. We're going to cap that and give real wins to people who need their insulin.
We're going to give real wins to people who need childcare. We're going to cut the costs for working families and for families across the country. The child tax credit. These are the things that will make people feel differently about
their lives and livelihoods.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Why is paid family leave going back into the bill without Manchin's OK?
JAYAPAL: You know, I'm so excited that it is going back into the bill. I don't know what conversations have been had. But obviously, that's been a priority of the progressive caucus for a long time and we're thrilled.
Let's see what the discussions have been. But it's fabulous news from our standpoint.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Is the solution, is this going to have tax cuts for billionaires in it.
JAYAPAL: I think the provision has been dramatically changed. And the proposal that Tom and Katie Porter had put forward I think is a proposal that we could support.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What about --
(CROSSTALK)
JAYAPAL: Did you just do that together? Were you going to ask the same question?
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: (INAUDIBLE) -- review it before they bring it to the floor for a vote. Clock's working against you right now.
JAYAPAL: They've had 72 hours, you know. The bill was released on Thursday. We spent the whole weekend, our members do, reading through the entirety of the text. There are some changes. We're going to review those changes.
But at this point we need to get it done and we need to vote both bills out. And that's what we're going to do.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are there going to be benefits for -- (INAUDIBLE)
JAYAPAL: I'm hoping to -- I think I know the answer to that, but I'm not sure, so I want to make sure. Everything is changing by the minute. So maybe we'll get that information when I go in there.
But I think you know, obviously, immigration is another one of our priorities, our five priorities that we've been pushing very hard on.
You know how important it is to me personally. It's something that I've spent my life working on, as an immigrant myself. So I'm hoping for the most that we can possibly get.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: What do you plan to do during the recess? What are you expecting to hear from your voters about the agenda about these bills?
JAYAPAL: I'm going to sleep.
(LAUGHTER)
JAYAPAL: No, look, I'm going to be out every minute I can talking to people about what we're going to deliver.
Because I think that's what people need to hear. They want us to hear their pain. And they want us to know that things are tough. Things are still tough.
COVID is still an issue. Health care is still an issue. Housing is still an issue. Childcare is still an issue. Jobs.
We talk about the infrastructure bill as a jobs bill, and it is. But the Build Back Better plan has more jobs than the infrastructure bill. So, and it has jobs for women and jobs for folks of color.
So that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to be out there making sure everyone knows what it is that we just passed.
(CROSSTALK)
JAYAPAL: Thank you. I'm going to run.
UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Back to your district without anything yet?
RAJU: So couple of things there sticking out is one of which she said the issue about SALT.
Now that is the issue about state and local tax deductions that have been pushed by the members from the northeast, in particular, and concerns about how it was capped in the 2017 Republican tax law.
They wanted to loosen those to make it easier to deduct those taxes. It had been a major sticking point. Some of the progressives had been concerned and opposed to what the SALT provisions were going to be in this proposal.
Pramila Jayapal just said there she expects that to change dramatically and she expects whatever changes are mode to win her support.
The issue is immigration. That remains a major sticking point in this bill. There's provisions in there to help deal with the folks who are in this country, undocumented immigrants, who are in this country.
Now that provision has been resisted by a number of moderate Democrats. Joe Manchin, in particular, has indicated his concerns, including in the underlying bill.
And right now, Nancy Pelosi is meeting with key Hispanic lawmakers who have demanded immigration be part of this bill or they may withdraw their support.
[14:35:00]
It's unclear how that is resolving. Jayapal there says she doesn't know about the results either.
She is walking into a House caucus meeting coming at a crucial moment. Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the house, expected to brief her caucus about what's going on here.
We'll see if she details if the sticking points have been resolved that they're still haggling over about when or whether they can actually get this done -- guys?
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: All right, Manu Raju, there for us on Capitol Hill, thank you so much.
Let's bring in now Democratic Congressman Ruben Gallego. He represents a district in Arizona.
Congressman, good to have you.
I want to get to a couple of these. I want to start with paid leave And are you part of the conversations on why this is now being added back to the bill?
REP. RUBEN GALLEGO (D-AZ): I think a lot of us have said and had the same feeling and the idea we're going to negotiate among ourselves because of what one or two Senators want just didn't make any sense.
There's a process for them to deal with what they don't like. I think something we have here is that the bill has been marinated. It's time for us to put it in the oven and let's get going.
Putting in something very popular among members as well as the public on the table is extremely important to get this going.
BLACKWELL: Let me ask you about immigration policy included in the bill as well.
Manu there hinted that there are some members of the Hispanic caucus who potentially would withhold their vote to support it if it's not added back.
Are you one of those members who would not vote for it without that portion?
GALLEGO: Well, just depends what you're actually -- when you say immigration, there's a lot that could be in that and what it means.
(CROSSTALK)
BLACKWELL: So what needs to be in it to get your vote?
GALLEGO: I have to see what the proposals are.
But the most important thing is that a minimum, you have to have a pathway for 190,000 of my Arizonans to have some stability in their lives and be free of deportation.
These are the 190,000 Arizonians that kept us alive during this pandemic. They were the essential workers. And I'd like to at least add some type of relief so they can stay with their families.
But that being said again, you know, again, I think we're here to negotiate. I want to see the best bill possible. One that has child tax credits in there. So families can get $300 a month per kid. So families can make some, to have some support when it comes to childcare.
So I'll look at the overall bill because that's what really matters to me. I want to make sure Americans are better off with this bill.
And you know, part of that I think is stabilizing this population of this country that really kept us alive during this pandemic.
BLACKWELL: Let me get clarity there. You said at a bare minimum, you need that. Without that, would you vote against it?
GALLEGO: Yes, I'd have to make a game time call. To be honest, as a human being, it's difficult to say no to something that's going to lift people out of poverty.
I mean, you know, the child tax credit will bring poverty down, child poverty down by 50 percent. It's hard to say no to that. It's hard to say no to paid family leave. It's really hard to say no to childcare subsidies, which we all need.
It's a tough call and I'll have to make it then and listen to what my constituents are hearing.
But I hope what we've been talking to speaker Pelosi about, this needs to be in there because we need to repay these front-line workers, even though they kept us alive throughout this whole pandemic.
Like who was -- who do you think was pulling the food out of the ground and who was processing the food while we were all, you know, staying in safely in our homes? It was this undocumented worker community.
BLACKWELL: You said that the legislation should not be held to the whims -- and I'm paraphrasing here, your words -- to one or two Senators.
One of those I expect you're speaking about is Senator Manchin, who made clear at the end of last week with the framework as it was that he was not supporting.
He said there were shell games and budget gimmicks and that it would continue to balloon. It wouldn't be $1.75 trillion.
Since then, there's been a deal on prescription drug pricing. There's been movement on adding paid leave. You're talking about immigration here. Does this not support or make his point that the bill will continue to
balloon and make it less likely that it's going to pass? It's going to reach the president.
GALLEGO: Well, look, the price hasn't gone up. By the way, the negotiations for prescriptions actually brings down the price of the 1.75 trillion you're talking about.
So you know --
(CROSSTALK)
BLACKWELL: And paid leave?
GALLEGO: What's that?
BLACKWELL: And paid leave?
GALLEGO: And paid leave was already part of the $1.75 trillion right now.
But here's problem right now.
BLACKWELL: Paid leave has been dropped from the framework before it was presented.
(CROSSTALK)
[14:40:58]
GALLEGO: Manchin kept moving back and forth, back and forth. What we need to do is deliver a bill so the American public can look at it. And if Manchin wants to work on it, he can work on the Senate side.
Right now, there's a demand from our members as well as the American public. They want to see movement. The stagnation they're seeing is disgusting.
And the way to do this is by actually popping the bill into the oven and sending it over to the Senate side.
We have the votes. Let's close this vote. And if Manchin wants to negotiate with himself and other Senators, he can do that. But it's time to move on.
BLACKWELL: I will point out that paid leave was dropped from the bill. It was added back to this framework.
Let me ask you a broader question. What's the lesson you take or what you think Democrats should take from what we saw in the votes last night?
GALLEGO: I think, number one, if we believe that Republicans are suddenly going to come back and you know, vote for Democrats again like we had cross-over support for Trump in 2020, it's not going to happen. Also, the Trump base voter is still angry and out there. It's not a
coincidence Youngkin tries to live in both worlds.
He lives in the Brooks Brothers, CNN, MSNBC world, while, at the same time, talking out of the right side of his mouth about, you know, all these crazy conspiracy theories and using the bogeyman of Critical Race Theory to really get the angry vote out.
Right? Even though it's not taught in any public schools at all.
So you're going to see a lot of politicians like that. They're going the try to play both worlds. They want to get the Trump voter as well as the moderate voter.
The Democrats need to come with ideas and programs that we are going to be popular and be able to sell. And we have to make sure that it impacts our whole base.
That's why the Build Back Better agenda is the key to that. Because it doesn't just take care of working-class union guys when it comes to infrastructure bills.
But it also takes care of working-class women who want to go back to work but can't have proper childcare. Takes care of seniors who can't afford proper hearing aids or prescription glasses.
It takes care of working families that are just trying to make it and gives them an opportunity with the child tax credit.
This is the bill we can sell and what we need to send over right away so the Senate can finish this and finally negotiate this out. Then we need to go talk about this great bill we passed.
BLACKWELL: So some progressives in Arizona are discussing potentially your primarying Senator Sinema there because they're dissatisfied with her movement or positions as it relates to the president's agenda.
Is that something you are seriously considering, primarying Senator Sinema?
GALLEGO: Look, right now -- and you've heard this again from me. I focus on passing the Build Back Better agenda and winning 2022. That's my only focus.
I'm going to leave the future to the future. I never say no to the future. But like that is not my focus right now.
And you know, Senator Sinema has been very helpful in the last couple of days in terms of her movement. I think a lot of us appreciate that.
And we hope she continues to go that way because it will be beneficial to everybody in this country that we have a strong Build Back Better bill.
Again, child tax credit, childcare subsidies, ability for you to use your Medicare to pay for your prescription glasses and hearing aids. These are things that can be transformational for this country.
BLACKWELL: All right, Congressman Ruben Gallego, thank you.
GALLEGO: Thank you.
BLACKWELL: Dr. Anthony Fauci says it is time that the U.S. exits the pandemic phase and moves into the, what he calls, control phase. How millions of young children getting their first dose will impact that effort.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:46:50]
BLACKWELL: Children ages 5 to 11 are now getting vaccinated against COVID-19 in the U.S. And that means that nearly 30 million more Americans are eligible for those two shots.
We got some pictures here of children in New York City getting vaccinated today.
Also in Texas, officials at one children's hospital said they are seeing a tremendous response. Parents are booking appointments. Nearly 37,000 of them already scheduled.
CNN's Alexandra Field has more on the rollout.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: I was pretty nervous, but then I said to myself that night, I have to do it to protect the world.
(APPLAUSE)
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A very big moment for America.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're absolutely happy tears.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's been an emotional journey.
FIELD: Smaller shots in smaller arms. Today, children as young as 5 are getting Pfizer's COVID vaccine.
UNIDENTIFIED GIRL: It's a big step into making the world normal again and so we all don't need to wear masks and for everyone to be safe and healthy.
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: I'm just happy.
FIELD: The decision to authorize shots for nearly 30 million kids, those between the ages of 5 and 11, means 94 percent of Americans are now eligible to get a shot.
President Joe Biden calling it a turning point in our battle against COVID-19, one that could begin to help move the country further from the pandemic to the en endemic phase of the virus.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I'm not sure we're going to get to zero spread, but we want to get out of pandemic phase and into a very good control phase.
FIELD: More of the child-sized doses now on the move with enough available today for millions of kids. By Saturday, they'll be in select Walgreens stores nationwide.
FAUCI: If my daughters were in the age range of 5 to 11, I would definitely get them vaccinated.
But I would, you know, ask the kinds of questions that parents should and will ask about the safety, about the efficacy, about why it's important to protect the children.
FIELD: While COVID-19 is less likely to cause severe illness in children, about 700 children have died from the virus, according to the CDC. And children can suffer from long COVID symptoMs.
Studies show the side effects among vaccines are fewer among children than among teens or adults.
DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, CDC DIRECTOR: We recognize that this is a new vaccine. We've taken the time to get this right.
The overwhelming evidence for parents to really know and understand is that the benefit of this vaccine so much outweigh the risks of COVID itself.
FIELD: For some parents, it couldn't come soon enough.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'd like to travel. Go to restaurants. Be without mask and just be more, you know, safe. We were just waiting for the CDC to approve it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Literally yesterday, and we didn't hesitate.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FIELD: You really can't overstate how momentous this day is for a lot of families out there, a lot of parents, a lot of kids themselves who have been waiting for this moment.
In the next hour, Victor, we're going to be hearing from the president. He'll be talking about the availability of the shots for the kids.
And over the next few weeks and months, we'll hear a major health push from public health officials about the importance of getting the shots.
It's not just about protecting your kid from COVID. It's not just about protecting the community.
[14:50:02}
It's also about creating a more normal life for children. Putting an end to disruptions to in-person learning, to in-person activities, to hopefully getting gets out of masks in schools and getting back to life the way it was.
BLACKWELL: A more normal life for all of us.
Alexandra Field, thank you.
And CNN is teaming up with "Sesame Street" again to host a town hall for families. CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Erica Hill will be hosting. Do not miss "The ABC's of COVID Vaccines" this Saturday morning at 8:30 only on CNN.
The Supreme Court is hearing arguments today in the biggest gun rights case in more than a decade. What the ruling could mean for the Second Amendment, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLACKWELL: The Supreme Court may be on the verge of expanding Second Amendment rights. Attorneys delivered oral arguments today on the biggest gun rights case in more than a decade.
This case centers around a New York law that restricts individuals from carrying concealed guns in public for self-defense.
Survivors of gun violence gathered outside the court prior to the arguments pleading for a decision that could, they say, save lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GABBY GIFFORDS, (D), FORMER U.S. CONGRESSWOMAN FOR ARIZONA: Words once came easily. Today, I struggle to speak but I've not lost my voice.
(CHEERING)
GIFFORDS: America needs all of us to speak out, even when you have to fight to find the words.
I'm also in a second fight, the fight to stop gun violence. We are at a crossroads. We can let the shooting continue or we can act.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[14:55:07]
BLACKWELL: Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords there. Good to see her doing so well.
Let's bring in CNN's Jessica Schneider.
Jessica, I know you have been monitoring this closely. What are we hearing there? Is there anything to read in the tea leaves? JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, probably, Victor.
The conservative majority in this case very critical of this New York law.
If they end up striking it down, that would expand the scope of the Second Amendment and make it very difficult for gun restrictions around the country, even those already in place, to stand.
Now, this specific case, it concerns the concealed carry of firearms in public, and how or if government officials can restrict that right.
Specifically, this is about a New York law and it requires people seeking a license to show proper cause, meaning they have to detail very specific and special circumstances as to why they should be allowed to carry a gun into public places for self-defense.
Well, the lawyer for the two men fighting this law, he says it infringes on the Second Amendment, since the right to carry guns should be broad. And he said people seeking a license shouldn't have to prove any special circumstances.
New York officials, on the other side, they say history is filled with instances of government officials restricting guns in public spaces.
But one person that was interesting to listen to was conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh. He, in particular, pushed back on restrictions like this, seeming that they violate the Second Amendment rights.
Let's take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRETT KAVANAUGH, U.S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICE (voice-over): Why isn't it good enough to say I live in a violent area and I want to be able to defend myself?
With any constitutional right, if it's the discretion of an individual officer, that seems inconsistent with an objective constitutional right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHNEIDER: Based on the arguments today, what we heard, it does appear the conservative majority court is inclined to strike down this New York law.
That would inherently expand the scope of the Second Amendment, the first time in more than a decade. Since, Victor, it was in 2008, when the court held individuals had the right to keep guns inside their home for self-defense.
This case would then widen the decision to include the right to bring guns into public places in many respects -- Victor?
BLACKWELL: Jessica Schneider on that case for us. Thank you so much. Let's bring in Parkland shooting survivor, David Hogg. He's the co-
founder of March for Our Lives. And he was at the Supreme Court today protesting for stricter gun control.
David, good to have you.
I want to start here with the context and the impact as you see it, and then go into the specifics.
If the justices -- we know it was a 6-3 conservative court -- strike down this New York law, what do you expect the implications will be?
DAVID HOGG, CO-FOUNDER, MARCH FOR OUR LIVES: Well, I think the implications will be broad, and have an effect on an entire generation.
The people that recently wrote in our brief for the Supreme Court case on our judicial advocacy team with March for Our Lives, when "D.C. versus Helder" was deciding I was in first grade.
Now we just wrote this brief and we know how long these decisions have of a long-lasting effect.
So if they don't side us, if they don't side with the American people's right not to be shot, we're going to continue to see this epidemic of gun violence continue to grow within this country and more shootings in our schools and communities to happen on a daily basis, unfortunately.
BLACKWELL: The other side of that argument -- you say the right not to be shot. For these petitioners, it's the right, they believe, to protect themselves.
One of them, or both of them have passed background checks. One took a training course, was denied a concealed carry license.
The other said a string of robberies in his neighborhood forced him to want to carry a weapon. He was denied. Personal safety extends beyond the home there.
So what do you make of Justice Kavanaugh's argument? Why isn't I live in a violent area good enough, enough of a reason to get a permit?
HOGG: Well, I mean, the fact of the matter is, if we continue allowing, you know, our unregulated militia to continue growing out there again and again -- and we see what was previously 40,000 people dying annually, now 45,000.
Do we want to live in a society where everybody has to be armed because we have an unregulated system, an unregulated militia, or simply because anyone who wants to have a gun, they can?
The shooter at my high school was able to legally obtain his a A.R.-15 despite repeatedly threatening my high school. Just by repeatedly threating my high school and having -- you know, just being a 19-year- old, he was able to go out and legally buy that. We see how bad this is. Americans need to realize this is a choice our
country makes. We do not need to be a society where people need to be armed everywhere they go simply because they need to be worried about an instance of violence happening.
[14:59:55]
This doesn't happen in basically any other country that has similar laws to the United States. It's not because those countries have more guns than people.
It's because those countries have sensible regulations that allow people to practice at times, you know. In the case of Switzerland, you know, their gun culture.
