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Biden, Cabinet Meet To Talk Infrastructure Push; Sen. Manchin Raises New Objection To Social Spending Bill; Attorney: Travis Scott "Truly Did Not Know What Was Going On"; Attorney: Scott Has "Grown Up" Since Past Crowd Incidents; Biden Speaks Amid Cabinet Meeting On Infrastructure Rollout; COVID Cases Surging In States With High Vaccination Rates. Aired 2:30-3p ET

Aired November 12, 2021 - 14:30   ET

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

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[14:33:27]

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: Any moment now, President Biden will gather his cabinet members together for a meeting to brainstorm ways to quickly roll out that trillion dollars infrastructure plan.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: The president will sign that bipartisan bill on Monday and then send several cabinet members on the road to promote the benefits.

CNN's Kaitlan Collins is at the White House. Manu Raju is on Capitol Hill.

Kaitlan, what is expected to come out of this cabinet meeting?

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is the first meeting that they've had since Congress has gotten this bill passed.

It is the first time that you're going to see all of the faces who are going to be playing a big role in implementing this trillion-dollar infrastructure plan into place once the president has signed it into law on Monday.

Because this is going to range from the Transportation Department to the Commerce Department to several other cabinet heads, who will not have a role in implementing this bill but also in promoting it.

Because the White House sees that as almost equally as important because, of course, they know that these infrastructure projects are going to take time to put in place.

And so they want to be able to show voters that, look, this is what Democrats could get done, this is what they passed, and this is how it is going to change your life.

Of course, it was passed with the help of some Republicans. Though the White House has not said how many Republicans we should expect to see at that signing ceremony here at the White House on Monday. CAMEROTA: Manu, where the president and Congress with the Build Back

Better bill. Obviously, that is the even larger social safety net plan.

And I know you have new reporting about Joe Manchin. So what have you learned?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, next week is a key week on Capitol Hill because Democrats in the House are trying to get this bill finally passed.

Their bill is about $1.9 trillion. They do expect to get the moderates in line.

[14:35:10]

The moderate Democrats, you'll recall, had asked for more official cost estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to explain the full cost to show it is fully paid for as the White House has promised.

So assuming that happens -- and there's an assumption that it will -- then it does shift to the Senate. And all attention is once again on Joe Manchin.

Now him and Kyrsten Sinema for months have been seen as the two key holdouts here. But there's an expectation that Sinema will fall in line. She's giving reassurances to Democrats that she likes the direction of this bill.

Manchin, on the other hand, is a different story. He still has a number of concerns over some of the key policies, whether it is dealing with the environment or dealing with health care, the expansion of Medicare, some of the benefits.

And it is uncertain if he's OK with the time frame that Democrats are pushing. They want to get this done potentially before Thanksgiving and definitely before Christmas.

Can he get there by that point? That is uncertain.

When I'm talking to Democrats, it's that they're trying to change their approach. Some have gone and publicly berated Joey Manchin.

Cori Bush, one of the progressive freshmen, said that Joe Manchin essentially has anti-black views, anti-immigrant views by opposing the larger expansion.

Now some Democrats have told me that's absolutely wrong approach to take with Manchin. They're concerned that will essentially alienate him and push him away from supporting the bill.

Behind the scenes, a number of members have reached out, tried to build some good will. At one meeting, progressive Democrat, Ro Khanna, kind of defended Manchin on TV. Manchin thanked him for that. But we're seeing some others as well. And Manchin, too, has made clear to progressives that he -- they don't have any leverage over him. That's what he told Pramila Jayapal, who is the head of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

But that, ultimately, this will be up to Joe Biden to get Manchin in line.

Biden pushed progressives to get behind the infrastructure plan on last Friday night, saying that he could ultimately get Manchin and Sinema aboard.

Even warning those progressives that, if they don't get behind the infrastructure bill, he could pull the entire agenda. That is the kind of thing they want him to do with Manchin.

Can he get there though? That is a separate question.

BLACKWELL: Let's talk about this sales job, the sales pitch to the American people, the infrastructure bill, Kaitlan.

Because part of this sale is that it is supposed to help the economy. Other elements of the agenda are supposed to help those people struggling.

But how are people supposed to accept that and believe that, when all they see around them are these surging prices, increased inflation?

COLLINS: That is really the challenge for the White House. Because what they will be talking about is what will be changed with this infrastructure bill, a lot of it is long-term.

Of course, we know, right now, short-term inflation is the concern that people have, what they are paying this week for gas and groceries, and the concerns about the upcoming holiday season.

And so the White House, as you saw with President Biden in Baltimore, as he was just a few days ago, in Baltimore, talking about the supply chain issues, saying this infrastructure bill is going to be something that helps smooth those supply chain issues.

But of course, that is going to be something that takes quite some time. And the White House has acknowledged that.

So I think that is the challenge for the president and for these cabinet secretaries who are out on the road selling this bill.

Not just talking about the changes that it is going it have but, of course, the bigger issues of what is going to change immediately, which is, of course, what so many voters would like to see.

CAMEROTA: OK, Kaitlan Collins and Manu Raju, thank you both for the reporting.

[14:38:35]

Now Travis Scott's attorney is speaking out about what rapper knew and didn't know as his Astroworld performance turned deadly. That is coming up.

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[14:43:20]

BLACKWELL: Attorney Ben Crump said his team is filing more than 90 -- 9-0 -- 90 lawsuits representing 250 or more survivors of the Astroworld stampede that killed nine people last week.

We also learned from the family of a ninth victim identified, Bharti Shahani, that her organs were donated today.

The lawyers for Travis Scott, who headlined and organized the Astroworld Festival, also spoke this morning.

CAMEROTA: He told ABC that the rapper had no idea that fire officials had declared the incident a mass casualty event while he was performing.

That first declaration happened at 9:38 p.m., at least half an hour before the show ended.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ED MCPHERSON, TRAVIS SCOTT'S ATTORNEY: Truly, he did not know what was going on. As you could see from the clip, the clip, there are a couple of other times.

One with, you say an ambulance, but it looked more like a golf cart with some lights. He wasn't sure what that was but he stopped the show for that.

Understand that when he's up on the stage and he has flash pots going off around him and he has an ear monitor that has music blasting through it and his own voice, he can't hear anything, he can't see anything.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: CNN's Rosa Flores has been covering this story from Houston.

So, Rosa, we're also hearing dramatic, more dramatic accounts from survivors.

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, these survivors saying that it was one of the most traumatizing events of their lives.

This is a group of survivors that are represented by Ben Crump. He's representing more than 200 people.

And these individuals said and described that event as 45 minutes of torture, saying that they were packed like sardines, that they couldn't breathe at some points. And that they looked around and it looked like a war zone.

[14:45:05] Take a listen.

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DISHON ISAAC, ASTROWORLD STAMPEDE SURVIVOR: We were like sardines in a can. And the feeling was like imagine someone coming up behind you and bear hugging you as hard as they can.

And it is just bodies. I'll never forget the look of terror on people's faces.

UNIQUA SMITH, ASTROWORLD STAMPEDE SURVIVOR: I was caught in the madness and the mayhem until about 2:45 in the morning, not able to return to my children, no cell phone service or Uber home, no way to contact anyone.

There was no taxi service. So it was, literally, like I was trapped. It was truly the most traumatizing experience.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Now one of their attorneys said that they have evidence from logs that the promotors, security, and the medical services firm that was hired had knowledge that something had gone wrong.

Now we don't know exactly what those details are, Alisyn and Victor, but that gives you a sense of the evidence that they are uncovering as they work on their case.

BLACKWELL: That description of the tightest bear hug you've ever felt is clear there.

CAMEROTA: Yes.

BLACKWELL: Rosa, let's talk more about Travis Scott's attorney. He addresses, and we've discussed on the show, some of the past charges involving some mayhem in crowds.

What did that lawyer say?

FLORES: He said that Travis Scott has grown a lot since then. That he has grown as a performer. That he's a young performer.

Now about the night of this tragedy, he says that Travis Scott did not know the severity of the situation. He did not know that this was a mass casualty event.

That he had a lot of things going in his ear. The music was loud. That he's a young performer. And that he did not know, absolutely did not know the severity of the situation.

Take a listen.

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MCPHERSON: Travis as an artist has really grown up a lot. I've spoken personally to him about this. And he really didn't understand the magnitude of his power up on the stage, I think, as a young performer. And he's really matured over the years.

UNIDENTIFIED ABC NEWS CORRESPONDENT: So when he was telling the crowd to rage, that was not inciting them?

MCPHERSON: I don't think so. It is nothing more than any other performer wants. You want your audience to be engaged.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FLORES: Now that attorney was also asked, what responsibility does Travis Scott bear, and, Alisyn and Victor, he said that the investigation is going to reveal that.

BLACKWELL: Rosa Flores, for us in Houston, thank you.

COVID hospitalizations are rising in several cold-weather states. Coincidentally, these are some of the states that have some of the highest vaccination rates across the country. Up next, what this could mean as we head into the holiday season.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I want to thank you all for being here.

I want to thank Vice President Harris, who is online. I asked her to go to Paris to meet with Macron, President Macron, and to work on some things.

And thank -- Madame Vice President, in a little while, after this is over, maybe we can take and see if things are going OK for you. All right?

[14:50:07]

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES (voice-over): I would like that. Thank you, Mr. President.

BIDEN: OK.

And we've gathered my cabinet this afternoon at a moment of immense hope and possibility in our view for the United States.

The American people sent us here to deliver. The American people sent us here to make their government work. And they sent us here to make a difference in their lives. And I believe we're doing that. That's what we're doing.

On Monday, I look forward to signing into law the infrastructure act, the Investment in Jobs Act, which we'll do outside, god willing, the weather holding.

And it was a lot of hard work to get it done. Hard work for all the press here to watch me try and get it done. But I want to thank them for acknowledging that this was a bipartisan

bill with bipartisan support.

And proving we can still come together. It's hard, but we can still come together to get something big done for the American people.

And the bill represents critical investments that are long overdue in our country, from rebuilding our roads and highways, to getting rid of the lead pipes, delivering clean water to thousands -- actually, millions of people around the nation.

To making high speed Internet accessible to every American, rural and urban, to fortifying our bridges and power lines and levees that stand up to the increasing threats posed by extreme weather and superstorms.

And $99 billion worth of losses just this year, the consequence of those environmental events.

To fortifying our bridges, our power lines, as I said, and our levees, but also, to one of our biggest responsibilities, to make sure all the money is used efficiently and effectively.

And I have a lot of experience in doing that. When I was vice president, I was given the responsibility of overseeing, as my -- now running the Defense Department, but as my former chief of staff could tell you, of implementing the Recovery Act.

Which was nearly $9 billion of stimulus package -- $900 billion of the stimulus badge package.

And in the process, I'm proud to say, the president gave me authority, which I will be signing as well, to use whatever assets the federal government had, any personnel in the federal government.

And we put together a good team because, when we finished implementing the Recovery Act, it was determined that it had less than two-tenths of 1 percent waste or fraud, period.

That's how I became known -- started calling me Sheriff Joe, President Obama at the time.

Because I made it a point every day to stay on top of how exactly the money was spent, what projects were being built, what projects were not being built, and how it was functioning.

And it was one of the most efficient implementations of a major program in modern American history.

Well, it is my intention to see to it that the act we just passed that we're going to sign on Monday meets the same standard.

We owe it to the American people to make sure the money in this infrastructure plan and the Build Back Better plan, which, god willing, we're going to be able to still finish, will be able to be used for purposes of intent (ph). So that's what I want to talk to my cabinet about today. And the high

obligation, and responsibility that we all have to make sure this money is used wisely, used well, and used for the stated purposes for the American people.

Because if we do it right, we know what it will mean. We know what it will mean. It will create millions of new jobs. It will grow the economy.

And we'll win the world economic competition that we're engaged in in the second quarter of the 21st century with China and many other countries around the world.

And we're going to all see east, and I say, yes, ease, lower inflationary pressures on our economy.

And we'll be carrying this out, what I call, the blue-collar blueprint of America, one that builds the economy from the bottom up, and middle out, and one not from the top, down.

And so I want to thank you all for being here. That's what we're going to discuss today. And next week, I'll have further announcements of exactly who's going to be put in charge and how will we do this.

So thank you all so very much.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

(CROSSTALK)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let's go. Let's go.

[14:55:02]

CAMEROTA: He's not going to take any questions there.

We have been listening to President Biden meeting with his cabinet about how to implement that $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan.

And you heard him talking about how he believes that this will be the boost to the economy to fight back inflation.

BLACKWELL: Yes.

CAMEROTA: That's his thinking.

BLACKWELL: Now, the selling of it. Initially, the president was selling this as jobs legislation for the first few months of trying to roll it out.

Now, after we saw the strong jobs report for October, he's shifting to how it will help families who are struggling with the economic pressures. That's the top line we're seeing from the president. CAMEROTA: OK, let's bring in CNN White House correspondent, Phil

Mattingly, and CNN chief political analyst, Gloria Borger.

Phil, this was a day that the president has been looking forward to. He reminded everybody in the room that you have seen how hard it was for me to get here, but it was bipartisan.

And now, I guess the rubber meets the road in terms of how to implement it.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, I think there's a very real recognition inside the White House that it was a transformational victory to some degree.

It delivered on two critical campaign promises from the president, from the campaign for president, where the president made clear that he wanted bipartisanship. Check the box on that with this $1.2 trillion proposal.

And that he was the president to deliver on infrastructure when his predecessor and predecessors could not. Check the box on that as well.

But the reality is nothing matters if that proposal, if that bill is not implemented.

We've seen in the past where major pieces of legislation have run into significant hurdles during the implementation process, which has dramatically shifted the public's view of that proposal.

In this case, in particular, the president said and we've known that the president is going to appoint somebody to oversee the implementation.

He's made very clear that certain cabinet members with elements of this proposal under their agencies will be playing key roles as well.

There's a recognition, the administration believes that this could be a political boon for them, that everybody is going to see the projects in their districts, the roads, bridges, water systems, ports, when you talk about some of the supply chain issues we have seen.

But it won't matter at all if it's not implemented properly, or if there are big hold ups or problems during that process. So that will become a critical focus going forward.

Yes, the selling of this will be important. The president will be on the road next week. But putting into place, and making sure it's both seamless, to some degree, and transparent is huge in this moment for the administration.

BLACKWELL: Gloria, this is a win for bipartisanship, from the president's point of view. Nineteen Republican Senators voted for it.

We know that minority leader, Mitch McConnell, will not be at the signing of the bill, although he called this legislation a godsend for Kentucky. GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Right. Look, Mitch

McConnell politically, obviously, doesn't feel like he needs to stand next to the president of the United States for lots of pretty obvious reasons.

BLACKWELL: Sure.

BORGER: But he has been out there, and he has been saying, this is really important for the state of Kentucky.

And I guarantee you that other Republicans who did not vote for this legislation will be at the ribbon cuttings when new roads and bridges are finished, when broadband is brought to rural communities, even though they have not voted for it.

And one other thing I want to say is that -- and Phil touched on this -- is that the whole notion of making government work properly is so important to Joe Biden.

And not having a ton of waste, fraud and abuse in all of this is also personally important to Biden because, as he pointed out, he was the one who oversaw the implementation of the stimulus package under Obama.

And they were -- you know, they were so rigorous. And he intends to do that again because he doesn't want to give anybody an opportunity to say the Democrats are wasting your money.

And they want to be able to say look at how well spent this money has been and look at how we have helped your communities.

CAMEROTA: OK, Phil Mattingly, Gloria Borger, thank you very much.

BORGER: Sure.

CAMEROTA: All right, now to COVID. New cases are surging in several states, including the states with the highest vaccination rates.

BLACKWELL: Vermont, Rhode Island, Maine, have the highest vaccination rates in the country but all are seeing significant numbers of new cases.

Vermont health officials say the state is experiencing its worst COVID surge yet.

Dr. Rob Davidson is an E.R. physician in Spring Lake, Michigan.

And we understand, you're seeing the same trend there in Michigan, new cases, hospitalizations going up.

Specifically, on Vermont, Doctor, up 49 percent in two weeks of new cases. And 72 percent of Vermonters are vaccinated.

So is this what we should expect throughout the winter?

DR. ROB DAVIDSON, EMERGENCY ROOM PHYSICIAN: Well, I think those numbers have to be looked at closely. When you look at percent increases, when you start at a very low number, if you have significant number come up, those percentages are going to be high, even if the absolute numbers are not.

[14:59:58]

All I know is that, in my area, where I work, about 40 percent of people are vaccinated.

And we're seeing significant numbers, largely of unvaccinated people. And 90 percent of the people with COVID in our entire system across west Michigan are unvaccinated people.