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U.S. Reopens Borders Today to International Travelers After Nearly Two Years; Ahmaud Arbery Trial Resumes for Second Day of Testimony; Source Says, Pfizer to Seek EUA for Booster Shots for People 18-Plus. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired November 08, 2021 - 10:30   ET

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

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN NEWSROOM: Some good COVID news. We do like to bring you that when we have it. Today, the U.S. has reopened its borders to international travels after nearly two years. We should note visitors must be fully vaccinated. Those traveling by air must show proof as well of a negative COVID-19 test.

ERICA HILL, CNN NEWSROOM: CNN Reporter Priscilla Alvarez is at the southern border in El Paso, Texas, where there have been, as I understand, some serious lines today. Priscilla, what are you seeing there?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN REPORTER: Erica and Jim, it is a big day here in El Paso and across border communities in the United States as travel restrictions ease. We just toured the port of entry right behind me. This is a land crossing where there's been a steady stream of pedestrians and vehicles.

Officials here expect that traffic will pick up. It is still early in the morning in El Paso. I spoke to a student who had crossed to come to school in the U.S., and he told me he woke up early today in anticipation of more travelers.

Now, the key difference today is it is reopening to nonessential travelers.

[10:35:03]

That is people coming into the U.S. to visit friends or family or for tourism, and they're going to have to carry proof of vaccination. And that can be in digital or paper form. The U.S. is accepting FDA and WHO-authorized or approved vaccines. And they also say that children under the age of 18 are exempt.

And unlike air travel, COVID-19 tests are not required. But as I mentioned, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, an agency that has been under immense strain this year, is anticipating larger travel volumes and extended wait times as the day continues.

But the overall consensus among border mayors is that this is a positive development and a much-needed one. Border communities are linked to one another, and a lot of local businesses depend on cross border travel. And so there is excitement today for those businesses to get back up and running and back up on their feet. I've spoke on the people here in El Paso who saw some local businesses close during these restrictions. So, a lot of anticipation today.

I spoke to Veronica Escobar, Representative of Texas, who represents here, El Paso, and she told me it is a, quote, long-awaited day. Jim and Erica?

SCIUTTO: When we were down there a couple of years ago, it's basically folks live on both sides of the border, kind of commute back and forth. So, it's nice to see that open again. Priscilla Alvarez, thanks very much.

Well, the second day of the trial for the three men accused of killing 25-year-old Ahmaud Arbery is now underway. Prosecutors are calling their second witness today. Our legal experts will weigh in on that, what jurors are likely to see and hear in court, including a man who survived that shooting, this after a quick break.

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SCIUTTO: This is live picture we're going to show you in a moment here of the Ahmaud Arbery trial. This is an officer who responded to the shooting. I misspoke before break saying a witness' shooting officer, the first respond to that shooting there in South Georgia. It is the second day of testimony, the trial of three white men accused of murdering Ahmaud Arbery while he was out jogging.

HILL: This second witness prosecutors called, the investigator who took photos of the crime scene. The state showed jurors pictures of Arbery's body, a shotgun with blood on it and close-up photos of the gunshot wound to his chest.

SCIUTTO: Well, joining us now, CNN Legal Analyst and Civil Rights Attorney Areva Martin, and former New York Prosecutor and Trial Attorney Charles Coleman Jr. Great to have you both on, given your experience here.

I want to ask as we look at the officer responding here, and I believe they're going to be playing some video as well which shows him on the ground, tell us, if we could begin with you, Areva, the importance of this testimony for specifically here, the prosecution.

AREVA MARTIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, Jim. This testimony is critically important. What we've seen this morning so far is this investigator walked the jurors through that crime scene, showing very graphic photographs of Ahmaud on the ground, his bloody body, his clothing, the blood on his clothing, the blood on his body, and the actual gunshot wounds that were inflicted on him by Travis McMichael.

And you have to remember this jury, although there were issues with regards to race and comments by the judge, potential discrimination, there are 11 women on this jury. And I can't help but imagine that those women are sitting there looking at these bloody photographs, looking at these very graphic photographs, and listening to this investigator who started out by calling Ahmaud (INAUDIBLE) the body but then eventually started calling him by his first name, really humanizing and personalizing him for the jurors.

As a mother myself, and I'm sure there are lots of mothers on that jury panel, that this testimony and these photographs are having a profound impact on how they're thinking about this case.

HILL: Charles, just picking up on that, right, and the reaction, the emotional reaction that jurors can have, and, frankly, those watching, there was a very powerful moment on Friday in the courtroom. Ahmaud Arbery's mother chose to stay as video of her son's death was shown. Oftentimes, family members will leave for understandable reasons. But the fact that she stayed, the fact that everyone in the courtroom could see what this was like for her to have to see what happened to her son, how does that moment stay with a jury? What's your takeaway from that, Charles?

CHARLES COLEMAN JR., CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Well, I think that's very, very important because what we have to remember is that we know we are going to hear from different police officers, we know we're going to hear from the 911 operator. We don't know whether we will hear from the defendants as of yet. But what we do know is that there is one witness we'll never hear from, and that's Ahmaud Arbery himself.

And so because of that, it is critically important that the prosecution and everyone who is surrounding this case and wanting to get a conviction of the McMichael family, they are going to need to try as best as possible to remind this jury that Ahmaud Arbery was a living human being, because he was not going to be there, he is not going to be in person, we are not hear his words.

And so everything that you just described, everything that was just talked about in terms of the scene that has been painted, it is all intended to speak for Ahmaud Arbery because he is unable to speak for himself because he was killed. And that is why it's so critically important that she stayed. It was critically important because it can't get out of the eyes or minds of the jurors, and that was a huge moment for the prosecution.

SCIUTTO: Areva, the three men are claiming that they were making a citizen's arrest after pursuing Arbery for what they perceived to be a burglary.

[10:45:09]

Now, the citizen's arrest law in Georgia has since been largely repealed, but it was the law at the time. Does that offer any potential legal protection for the defendants here?

MARTIN: I don't think so, Jim. I think the argument is fatally flawed. A couple of problems to begin with. One, the defendants say that they were making a citizen's arrest, but what we will see in the videotape, there was never any mention of citizen's arrest by either of these defendants, Gregory McMichael, or Travis McMichael, or even this third defendant that's on trial. No one ever said to Arbery, you know, stop, Ahmaud, we're trying to arrest you under this citizen's arrest, you know, statute.

And also you have this big problem with the defense, which is that they are the initial aggressors. They chased Ahmaud down in this neighborhood. They trapped Ahmaud with this vehicle. There's going to be testimony that there were four efforts, and we heard that in the opening statement by the prosecutor, by the third defendant, William Bryan, to trap Ahmaud four different times with his vehicle.

So, this whole self-defense argument I think falls apart when you look at the fact that they are the initial aggressors. You don't get to create a dangerous situation and someone responds in the way that Ahmaud did and then claim that you are protected by self-defense.

HILL: Charles, one last quick thought from you.

COLEMAN: I think that Areva is completely right. I think one of the biggest problems with what the defense has to try to establish is that despite being the initial aggressors, that somehow that they -- even though they outnumbered Arbery, even though they were armed and Arbery was not, that somehow that they can even as the initial aggressors rely on self-defense. And the prosecution's job is to make that window as narrow and as slim as possible. And they're doing so far a solid job of it.

HILL: Areva Martin, Charles Coleman, good to have both of you with us today as we can continue to follow this, again, day two of testimony. Thank you.

COLEMAN: Thank you.

MARTIN: Thank you.

HILL: Well, the president finally getting a win on infrastructure. So, can he channel that momentum to help push his other bill through Congress? We'll update on where things stand live from Capitol Hill, next.

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HILL: Just in, Pfizer seeking emergency use authorization for a booster for its coronavirus vaccine for people 18 and older.

SCIUTTO: Yes. This would greatly expand the number of people recommended to get that third shot, or booster shot.

CNN Senior Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen following all this. So, Elizabeth, where were we in terms of the recommendation and where are we now?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: So, Jim, I think what's going on here is that the Biden administration is trying to make things clear, make simplicity out of what has really been quite chaotic. When boosters were approved for Pfizer in September, authorized, I should say, in September, they were authorized for people of certain ages, who had certain illnesses. It got very complex.

At the end of the day, when you ticked off all those boxes, about upwards of 89 percent of people qualified for boosters as long as they were at least six months past their Pfizer or Moderna second shot. I think what they're trying to do is clarify it.

So, Pfizer has applied to say, look, anyone 18 and older could get a booster. That's what Pfizer is applied for authorization for, a booster that anyone could get ages 18 and older. If this gets authorized, I think there will be clarity.

Now, some experts will tell you they don't like that. They think Dr. Paul Offit has called it booster palooza. That's what he calls it, booster palooza. It's just too much. Not all these people need boosters. Other people will tell you this is the right way to go. This is what they're doing in Israel. Israel has had a lot of success with this, and this is what the U.S. should be doing too.

SCIUTTO: Well, I got my booster on Friday, but I'm well over 18. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much for clearing it up.

COHEN: Thanks.

HILL: President Biden set to sign a major piece of his economic agenda into law in the coming days. Congress, of course, passed that landmark $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill on Friday. The legislative victory wouldn't have been possible without the support of 13 House Republicans. You see them on your screen.

SCIUTTO: CNN's Manu Raju joins us from Capitol Hill.

Okay. So, part of that agreement was setting the rules at least for passing the second part of President Biden's economic agenda. At risk of people going a little nuts as they hear another timeline, what is the most likely timeline as we go forward?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I tell you, it's still up in the air about whether they can get this passed and what form it will take and when exactly that will happen. Now, there is one initial deadline that could certainly be blown, November 15th. That is the big next time that both sides agreed to move forward on the larger social safety net package, roughly $1.9 trillion bill that is now awaiting action in the House.

But there's a major caveat. That is the Congressional Budget Office. They are the nonpartisan scorekeepers. There was an estimate from the Congressional Budget Office about exactly how much that costs.

[10:05:03]

Now, the moderates in the House have demanded that that estimate come before they can vote for this bill, so there was a late-night deal reached on Friday from progressives to vote for that separate infrastructure bill that is now headed to Joe Biden's desk, they that said, okay, we'll move forward on November 15th assuming the CBO comes back and says that this bill is fully paid for.

So, the question though in talking to a number of members and aides, there's a belief that this could slip up until Thanksgiving week, perhaps even later. And then you have the whole issue, guys, too of what happens in the Senate, where Joe Manchin, in particular, could wield (ph) on this bill. Can they get an agreement with the moderates, get it from the progressives? That could take weeks if it happens at all. Guys?

HILL: Buckle up. Manu Raju, I appreciate it, as always. Thank you.

SCIUTTO: And thanks so much to all of you for joining us today, a busy news day. I'm Jim Sciutto.

HILL: And I'm Erica Hill.

At This Hour with Kate Bolduan starts after this break.

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