Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

President Biden Meets with Health Officials on Omicron Variant; Republicans Politicizing New COVID-19 Variant; Burglaries on the Rise in the U.S. and Retailers are the Victims; Seven Children Still in the Hospital from the Tragedy in Waukesha; Jobs Report and Wage Growing; Warning of a Possible Coup Against the Ukrainian President. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired November 28, 2021 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You are live in the "CNN Newsroom." I am Jim Acosta in Washington. President Biden is huddling with COVID experts as the U.S. braces for the arrival of a new highly mutated coronavirus variant known as omicron.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CROSSTALK)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm having a meeting with my medical team. As I get back to the White House, I'll have more to say.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And while we wait for more information, a top U.S. health official is laying out says the very latest on what we do know so far saying there's no evidence yet to suggests it causes more serious illness than previous variants. Instead, there's a chance, fingers crossed, it could cause milder illness.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRANCIS COLLINS, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH: There's even a bit of a report from South Africa that maybe people with this are milder than the usual case. But they're mostly young people who have mild illness anyway. We do think it's more contagious when you look at how rapidly it's spread through multiple districts in South Africa.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: But let's be cautious about this. It is still early in this process. Nothing is concrete and we still do not know a lot. And that is whether or not our current vaccines can stand up to this variant. Moderna saying they expect to know the impact on their vaccine in a couple of weeks. In the meantime, many travel doors across the globe are slamming shut

in hopes of slowing the spread. Seven hours from now, the U.S. will join multiple nations in restricting travel from seven countries including South Africa where this new variant was first identified. CNN's Joe Johns is at the White House. And, Joe, what more are we learning about the president's COVID briefing today?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Right. Well, just a little bit of clarity as I was walking out here to the camera just a couple of minutes ago, I did see the sentry outside the Oval Office go indoors signaling the president's business is over. We're also told that briefing has wrapped up and we're told to expect a read-out, presumably written, to tell us whatever it is the administration would like us to learn about the president's briefing, which we're told included Dr. Anthony Fauci.

And I think also important to say that this administration has been trying pretty much all afternoon to send a very strong and clear message that the president is very much focused on the omicron variant to the extent that the administration put out a statement even before he left Nantucket on his Thanksgiving weekend saying he was going to have this meeting, and now it has occurred.

Also, I think important to say, Jim, that we are now in the countdown period before those travel restrictions on several Southern African countries, including South Africa, as well as Botswana, we are in that countdown period before we actually see those travel restrictions go into effect.

The question, of course, for the president, which he did not answer today, is whether he's going to expand any of those restrictions in light of what the scientists have learned over the last weekend. Jim, back to you.

ACOSTA: And of course, we know there are cases popping up all over the globe, not just in that part of Africa. Joe Johns, thank you very much.

The world is racing to contain this new variant with multiple countries blocking and restricting flights from South Africa and surrounding nations, a move that both the World Health Organization and South Africa have condemned. CNN's Nada Bashir joins us now from London and Nick Valencia is at Atlanta's Hartsfield Jackson International Airport.

Nick, let me go to you first. Flights from Johannesburg are still arriving in the U.S. and will continue arriving in the U.S. even after these restrictions go into effect tomorrow. Tell us about that.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. In fact, I just spoke to somebody who had just recently arrived from Johannesburg earlier today. Alhan described her experience traveling as just a downright nightmare and said when she was in Johannesburg over the course of the last 24 hours, that flight, her initial flight in fact, was canceled she said after the emergence of the news of omicron. She was eventually able to get on a flight, but she said several

people she saw there at the airport in Johannesburg were not. I asked her if she had any second thoughts about getting on a flight with the news of this new variant strain, she said she didn't. And she added that she wouldn't be surprised if it was already in the United States.

[17:04:58]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALHAN, ARRIVED FROM JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA: I wouldn't be surprised. And, again, when you have the vaccine you could carry those things and show no symptoms. So, people just need to stop panicking so much.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: We were surprised to learn there was no additional screenings for her either when she arrived back in Atlanta. And we're hearing that from other passengers north of us. In Newark, a passenger arrived earlier today there and also said that they were surprised they weren't privy to any initial or didn't have to go through any additional screenings.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: The pilot let us know that they will be checking COVID tests randomly, that we weren't one of the people who were, you know, checked. But, you know, they were checking for people's tests to see the negative result from the last 72 hours. And then they had this really cool station here where you could take a COVID test on site and they give you this little at-home test kit in case you are feeling any symptoms in the next few days.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: Back here in Atlanta, it is very much so business as usual for Delta Airlines, the hometown airline here for Atlanta. They're continuing flights to South Africa despite this travel restriction going into effect on Monday. And, Jim, the passengers that we've spoken to here, for the most part, are actually kind of flippant when it comes to news about omicron saying that it is -- has not factored in and did not factor in at all to whether or not they would travel today.

There is only one person in the many people that we've spoken here today who says they have some sort of trepidation and anxiety moving forward and is uncertain about what this all means. But we are pretty surprised to hear here from passengers saying that really this news isn't going to impact them any -- at all going forward. Jim?

ACOSTA: All right, Nick, we'll see if that remains the vibe over at the airport. Nada, let me go to you in London.

VALENCIA: Yes. ACOSTA: We should note we just learned the first two cases of the omicron variant have been confirmed in Ontario up in Canada. In the meantime, the U.K. government is announcing more restrictions today. What's changing?

NADA BASHIR, CNN: Actually, Jim, there are new measures coming into force in the U.K., perhaps not as stringent as what we've saw in previous waves or when previous variants were found. But the prime minister did announce yesterday that mandatory mask wearing will be brought back into force on public transport and in shops from Tuesday.

And the government is looking at what it said is boosting the booster program. That is widening the pool of people eligible to get that booster jab and of course shortening that gap between the second and third dose. So that is coming on to consideration. That's all part of efforts to really stem the spread of this new variant.

But what is the key focus now really is those travel restrictions. Now, the U.K. government has already added at least 10 countries so far in the Southern African region to its red list. That means travelers coming back from those countries will be required to isolate for 10 days in a government-approved hotel at their own expense.

But the government is also widening its travel restrictions to all travelers from Tuesday in terms of the PCR testings. So now travelers will be required to take a PCR test by day two of their arrival in the U.K. and will be required to isolate until they receive that negative test result.

So, real efforts there to control checks on the borders and we've seen similar measures come into force across Europe and that is really in light of what we've seen in those rising cases. We are seeing confirmed cases now in the U.K., three. Germany has confirmed its third case and Italy as well.

And also, in the Czech Republic, it's confirmed its first case. And incidentally, the Czech president tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday, but that didn't stop him from appointing the new prime minister, although he did this in a COVID friendly way, in a prospects clear box today. Jim?

ACOSTA: That's a stunning image in and of itself. All right, Nick Valencia, Nadia Bashir, thanks so much.

Signs of the times for all of us. For more on this, I'm joined by infectious diseases specialist and epidemiologist Dr. Celine Gounder. Dr. Gounder, great to see you. Tanks so much. How are you feeling about all of this? We just learned omicron is in Canada. It's on our doorstep. I suppose, as Dr. Fauci was saying, others have been saying, it's probably here. It's almost certainly here.

CELINE GOUNDER, INFECTIOUS DISEASE SPECIALIST & EPIDEMIOLOGIST: Jim, I think the major takeaway, what your viewers should go home thinking about is that there's still much we do not know about omicron. We're still learning. And I think that as we were saying very early in the pandemic, pandemics are not about panicking, they're about policies, protocols, and practice.

And in this case, that means doing the work of characterizing the virus. Scientists are hard at work trying to figure out how well our current vaccines will protect against the omicron variant. It also means trying to figure out how infectious this variant is. If it is not as infectious as the delta variant, so you can think of it sort of as a foot race. If the delta variant is a lot faster than omicron, delta may still outpace, outgun omicron. And omicron may fade out as have other variants.

[17:10:01]

And then finally, we're still trying to figure out could omicron cause more severe disease in people than prior variants? We don't know. But there is, again, much that we still don't know and so I think the main things people can do to protect themselves right now is if you're not vaccinated, get vaccinated. If this does turn out to be an immune- evading variant, there may also well be benefit in getting an extra dose or booster dose of vaccine.

ACOSTA: Yes. You got to get those booster shots. And if you're not vaccinated, you're way behind the curve here. And President Biden briefed today ahead of today -- excuse me -- ahead of tomorrow's travel ban for South Africa and its neighbors.

You were part of his COVID transition task force. How granular do you think the information is getting in these briefings? If you had a chance to brief the president on all this, what might you be saying right now?

GOUNDER: Well, I think this harkens back to Christmas Eve of last year where our group got together, the board got together as we were hearing news of the alpha variant, which you will remember emerged from the U.K. around that time, and we were trying to figure out what to do at that time.

And I think it's going to be a very similar discussion about what are you doing with respect to travel restrictions. If somebody is traveling into the U.S. from overseas, what do you do about testing, about quarantines? How can we expand vaccination, which was a tool that was not at our disposal that time last year to the general population, so how can we make better use of vaccines? I think all of these things are going to be looked at very carefully again.

ACOSTA: And a passenger in Newark who arrived from South Africa told CNN the COVID test they took before leaving South Africa were randomly checked. Is it fair to have these travel bans in place effectively punishing South Africa when the U.S. doesn't even appear to be doing a lot of the due diligence that needs to be done?

GOUNDER: Well, it's also a big loop loophole that people who live in the U.S. who are American citizens who are traveling back and forth are exempt from these restrictions.

ACOSTA: Right. GOUNDER: They can still return. Right. So that's a huge number of people who you're leaving out of the equation. I think the other piece, and I think a lot of people don't realize this, South Africa has some of the best virologists in the world.

They have cut their teeth on the HIV pandemic, have been honing their skills in this field for decades. So the fact that they detected this so quickly, informed the rest of the world so promptly is really a testament to that science.

ACOSTA: Yes. I mean, you know, that's what we've been hearing from so many folks. A lot of the experts out there in the last 24 hours really crediting the South Africans for getting an early warning out to the world. We owe them a debt of gratitude on this no matter how it turns out. Hopefully it turns out for the best. Dr. Celine Gounder, thanks as always for your expertise. We appreciate it.

And he's a doctor turned lawmaker turned conspiracy theorist. The latest Republican spreading baseless lies and raising doubts about the seriousness of the coronavirus. You're live in the "CNN Newsroom."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:15:00]

ACOSTA: With a new variant comes a new conspiracy theory courtesy of a Republican member of Congress. Congressman Ronny Jackson who you may remember for his effusive praise of Donald Trump's good genes back when he was the president's physician, tweeted this, "Here comes the MEV, the Midterm Election Variant. They need a reason to push unsolicited nationwide mail-in ballots. Democrats will do anything to cheat during an election but we're not going to let them!" tweeted Congressman Ronny Jackson.

Apparently, there is no treatment for what the congressman is suffering from. But joining me now is CNN's senior political analyst John Avlon, CNN political commentator and host of PBS "Firing Line," Margaret Hoover. You know, guys, you know, we're all just supposed to believe that these countries reporting this new variant from the U.K. to Belgium to Australia -- we just found out Canada, they're all in on the conspiracy. What's -- help me out, please.

JOHN AVLON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I mean, isn't that obvious, Jim? I mean, isn't it clear that a global pandemic is simply a partisan political conspiracy designed to hurt Republicans. Look, Ronny Jackson, one day we'll get to the bottom of what happened to him. But, in all seriousness, the idea that the rise of this new variant is related to domestic or partisan politics is of course ridiculous.

It's an obscene form of negative partisanship given that three- quarters of a million Americans have died. And if he wants to point the finger at anybody in terms of the persistence of death and the persistence of the pandemic, look at the folks who have been spreading disinformation and lies about vaccination because it's still a pandemic of the unvaccinated in terms of hospitalizations. And as we face this new variant, those folks will be the ones who continue to suffer the most.

MARGARET HOOVER, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: And which -- is what makes it the most objectionable. And this is a medical doctor with a doctor of the president of the United States, a couple times over.

AVLON: Yes.

HOOVER: The idea that he has become a MAGA world conspiracy theorist undermining his old profession, undermining faith that people have in public health officials, forget it. How about just with their doctors? It's actually real malpractice in his profession, the profession that frankly put him on the map and is the reason he's in Congress in the first place.

AVLON: That's --

ACOSTA: Yes. It sounds like he's making house calls to Alex Jones, but we're also seeing once again this push by Republicans to get people up in arms about COVID measures. Take a listen to Donald Trump. Jr.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, JR., EVP, TRUMP ORGANIZATION: You don't hear about what's going on as it relates to the riots in Europe on a daily basis now against the vaccine mandates because our media wants to block that out. They're going to make sure that you never hear about it because they don't want you getting these kinds of ideas that freedom may actually still exist in some parts of the world. I mean, Europe is pushing back and America is sitting there like sheep, ah, you know, this is great, we'll just go along with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[17:20:04]

ACOSTA: I'm trying to figure this out. Don, Jr. is upset that there aren't riots here in the United States over COVID vaccines? Hasn't the Trump family had enough riots at this point?

AVLON: Apparently not, not for their taste. Speaking of Alex Jones' level energy, Donald Trump, Jr. seems certainly amped up about his latest conspiracy theory. And the invoking of sheeple is when you know it's all gone really, really well.

This has nothing to do with freedom. This conflation of public health with propaganda is the source of a lot of the sickness in our country, not just the persistence of the virus, but the disinformation that gets fueled by people like Donald Trump, Jr. who should probably find a real job at this point.

HOOVER: Yes. It's just -- it's notable, too. I mean, this pointing out of the media and blaming the media like Americans, as though Americans live in a totalitarian system where we don't have an internet and we can't look up, I don't know, the BBC, any European paper, any source of information around the world. We are not living in authoritarian regime that shuts off our internet access or our access to our free inquiry of information.

Perhaps the people listening to him are in the sense that they are trapped, they are trapped in a siloed information cycle. And so they're willing to believe him. And that's the real danger here.

ACOSTA: And Dr. Fauci -- I don't have what he -- yes. I try not to. I'll abstain in that case. Dr. Fauci, by the way, he came out swinging today against Republicans like Senator Ted Cruz who believe he should be prosecuted. This was a spicy sound bite from Dr. Fauci. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARGARET BRENNAN, CBS NEWS HOST: Senator Cruz told the attorney general you should be prosecuted.

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Yes. I have to laugh at that. I should be prosecuted. What happened on January 6th, senator?

BRENNAN: Do you think that this is about making you a scapegoat to deflect from President Trump?

FAUCI: Of course. Of course. You have to be asleep to not figure that one out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: I mean, he's -- I think he's out of blanks to give, as the kids might say.

HOOVER: Yes, look. You know, you -- whatever you think about Dr. Fauci, and he has been deeply politicized, right? Part of the reason he was politicized in the first place, I mean, the right will say, oh, he was held up to -- he was just sort of made into this icon. Well, the only reason he became sort of a hero of the left is because he became a villain of the right first.

And you can understand. This is a man who's dedicated his entire public career, he's 82 plus years old. I mean, he's in his early 80s. Gets up every morning, runs four miles and then devotes himself to trying the best he can as a person with really deep knowledge on public -- in medicine and in public health, to trying to save people, right.

And we don't always get it right, we're all human, right? But you can understand why he'd be mad. I mean, finally it's kind of nice to see him just, you know, shrug it off and demonstrate, like he's human, too.

ACOSTA: Absolutely. And I -- well, I do want to get your take on this, the GOP is attacking Vice President Kamala Harris over purchasing some nice cook cookware. I don't know if you guys saw this, but they tweeted, "While Americans are struggling to pay more than ever for the holidays, Kamala Harris is out buying a $375 pot." I mean, does anybody remember that the previous president had an apartment that looked like something out of an Austin Powers movie? I mean, I'm just trying to, you know, get a handle on this one.

AVLON: I mean -- or more -- yes. More to the point, I mean, you know, was charging the Secret Service i.e., U.S. taxpayers $650 at night for the -- have to be protected at Mar-a-Lago when he went on vacation in addition to the overall cost.

ACOSTA: Right.

AVLON: Look, this is one step below the Obama wearing a tan suit scandal. This is just searching for something to be offended by. And frankly, you know, at a time when we are dealing with an ongoing pandemic, for the RNC to be fixating on this nonsense, it's predictable, but that doesn't make it any less pathetic.

ACOSTA: Margaret, what do you think?

HOOVER: Okay. I think for a certain -- look, there are certain rhetorical and political tropes in politics that repeat themselves. And there is a version of this that happened in the Obama administration, in the Clinton administration.

It's part of the limousine liberal riff, oh, these Democrats who, you know, are really supposed to be for the working people, who really sip their lattes in their limousines. I mean, it is connected to that trope. And these things repeat themselves throughout history and throughout -- actually, throughout the 20th century.

AVLON: Margaret's exactly right about the sort of synaptic lineage of this particular non-scandal. But I mean, after Donald Trump was the republican standard-bearer, any pretenses towards being a party of austerity and lowercase Republican values, guess what folks? Out the window. He literally lived in a gold tower off Fifth Avenue.

[17:25:02]

ACOSTA: Exactly.

HOOVER: But that's the whole point about the synaptic residence of these tropes. They don't have to be in any kind of --

AVLON: Reality.

HOOVER: -- reality. They simply are repeating a theme that is resonant through multiple generations.

AVLON: Yes. It's so old fashioned that hypocrisy used to count in politics, but hell (ph).

HOOVER: Oh, yes. That's over.

AVLON: That train left the station a long time ago speaking of Austin Power.

ACOSTA: The standards are a little different now. Well, guys, thanks for stirring the pot with us. We appreciate your time.

AVLON: Take care, Jim.

ACOSTA: All right.

HOOVER: Thanks.

AVLON: Be well.

HOOVER: Be well, Jim.

ACOSTA: Coming up, smash-and-grab burglaries on the rise across the country. Is there anything authorities can do to stop these brazen attacks?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:30:00]

ACOSTA: A slew of smash-and-grab burglaries in high-end retailers across the country has authorities on alert. Highly organized flash mobs carrying out the robberies are causing shoppers a lot of concerns right now. CNN's Brian Todd has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the left, thieves violently hack away at a jewelry counter's glass case near San Francisco. On the right, several perpetrators ransack a Louis Vuitton store outside Chicago. Authorities say they made away with over $100,000 worth of handbags and other merchandise.

At this Nordstrom store in Canoga Park near L.A. on Wednesday, at least five people went in and did more than steal valuable merchandise.

ALAN HAMILTON, DEPUTY CHIEF, LOS ANGELES POLICE DEPARTMENT: A number of suspects entered the door here behind me and took several high-end purses. Unfortunately, we do have a security guard here that was working for the store, working for Nordstrom's that was attacked by the suspects.

TODD (voice-over): CNN affiliate KABC reports at least one of those suspect was wearing an orange wig. The same day at an Apple store in Santa Rosa, California, north of San Francisco, at least four people stole $20,000 worth of merchandise in what police say was a brazen daytime burglary in front of customers and staff.

Police said those suspects were between 14 and 18 years of age. This is all part of a wave of so-called smash-and-grab robberies at high- end stores in recent days in California and Illinois. Hits that were disturbing for their apparent level of coordination, the number of people involved.

BRET BARETTE, MANAGER, P.F. CHANG'S, WALNUT CREEK, CALIFORNIA: I probably saw 50 to 80 people in like ski masks, crowbars, like a bunch of weapons. They were looting the Nordstrom right here. TODD (voice-over): At least three of these robberies occurred at Nordstrom stores near Los Angeles and San Francisco. Customers are terrified.

UNKNOWN: Very disturbing because now I'm reluctant to come to Nordstrom's or even the mall for that matter to come and make my purchases.

TODD (voice-over): San Francisco's police chief says his department has made some arrests and recovered millions of dollars in stolen property. Asked by CNN who's carrying out these burglaries he said he believes it ranges from common thieves at the lower end to sophisticated organized groups at the top.

WILLIAM SCOTT, CHIEF, SAN FRANCISCO POLICE: There has to be a degree of organization in that. You know, we don't -- there's no way, in my mind, that we can have a situation where 20, you know, up to 80 people can invade a store or series of stores and there not be some communications and some organization.

TODD (voice-over): Law enforcement analysts tell us some of these could be copy-cat burglaries. They say these kinds of hits are tough to guard against. Security and police deployments are being ramped up at malls across the country during the busy holiday shopping season. One analyst says customers can also help.

TERRANCE GAINER, FORMER, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE CHIEF: They should always be sensitive to their surroundings. If it goes down while you are in the store or nearby, stay out of the way. If you are in a position to take a photo that would be helpful for the police or just observe what you are doing.

TODD (on camera): We reached out to Nordstrom to ask about any enhanced security measures the chain may be taking to guard against these robberies and to ask whether there is a possibility of an inside job with some of these hits. They didn't get back to us.

Analysts say one thing law enforcement is likely doing is monitoring social media for signs of possible coordination and signs of anyone bragging about these burglaries. Brian Todd, CNN, Bethesda, Maryland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: More news coming up. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:35:00]

ACOSTA: This just in. We have learned seven children remain hospitalized a week after the driver of an SUV drove into a Christmas parade in Waukesha, Wisconsin. Waukesha's mayor is calling for a citywide moment of silence Sunday afternoon, in just a few moments from now actually at 5:39 p.m. eastern to mark the time the tragedy unfolded one week ago. Residents are also being encouraged to light blue lights outside their homes at that time and keep them on throughout the holiday season. Blue light bulbs are also being donated to those who need them. Let's listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Although this was not right, this was not the way, this is not truth, somehow we'll be stronger. Somehow this will draw us together. Somehow we will muster up the faith to continue on. Please pray with me. Lord Jesus, we come to you as our only source of hope in times of darkness, in times of confusion, in times of sorrow and grief and mourning, knowing that you are the way, you are the truth, and you are the life. May those words comfort us and guide us in the days, weeks, months, and years to come. And we pray in unison, believing in you, Jesus, amen.

UNKNOWN: And we will start our minute of silence.

UNKNOWN: I'm going to do the next song. It's called "Make Me a Channel of your Peace." If you're familiar with it, please join me in song.

[17:40:00]

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And that was a moment of silence you just watched in Waukesha, Wisconsin, a few moments ago, exactly one week from the moment when an SUV crashed through a Christmas parade there in Waukesha. Six people died, the latest victim was a child. And you can see all those stuffed animals and candles lined up there at this memorial that has been laid out in Waukesha. Just a scene of unspeakable pain. And of course our prayers and our thoughts are with everybody in that community tonight.

Let's bring in CNN's Natasha Chen. Natasha, you've been following this. What more are we learning about the victims? Obviously, they're still in the midst of dealing with just unbelievable grief in that community right now.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's been one week, but really there's so much to digest for everyone in Waukesha. I was there just a few hours after this happened last Sunday and I can tell the spot where they're gathered right now for that moment of silence. It's the Veterans Park. Its a few blocks west of where this SUV came through Main Street, through the barricades and really just shocked everyone and changed their lives.

As you mentioned, seven children are still in the hospital at Children's Wisconsin. Three of those seven are in serious condition. One of the patients there is 11-year-old Jessalyn Torres. And we've been seeing really emotional social media updates from her mother, just very heartbreaking about the challenges that she's going through on a day-to-day basis.

She's dealing with a broken pelvis, a fractured skull, lacerations to her lungs. Her mother said she's on a ventilator and that her daughter was really hit by this car in a way that the vehicle's grill marks were on the girl's chest and that she was flung 20 to 30 feet. So, there are a lot of families here still struggling and this community really rallying around them, Jim.

ACOSTA: Natasha, they need more than just a community rallying around them right now. They need the whole country. This is just -- this has been just an awful tragedy in that community, but Natasha Chen, thanks for your reporting last week. Thanks for staying on top of it, and of course, we'll stay on top of this story as it develops and bring you anything else that comes in this evening. But that is the scene in Waukesha, Wisconsin, this evening, and we'll be right back.

(COMMERICAL BREAK)

[17:45:00]

ACOSTA: What will Wall Street be watching for this week? Here's CNN's Christine Romans with your "Before the Bell" report.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Jim, the job market roared back in October and the end of summer wasn't as bad as initially reported. So, can that continue? The government's monthly job report is out on Friday. Economists expect the jobless rate drop to 4.5 percent, a new low for this recovery.

If we get 550,000 new jobs in November that are expected, it will mark the second straight month that half a million positions have been added back. Analyst say if that continues for a few more months, we're on a solid path. But this recovery has been unpredictable and uneven.

Leisure and hospitality has been the biggest area of growth, but that's one of the sectors that has the most ground to make up. Wave growth has been strong, but shoppers are paying more for just about everything and too many workers are still on the sidelines.

The labor force participation rate still hasn't returned to pre- pandemic levels. Tuesday, we'll get the Federal Reserve's take on the economy. Fed Chief Jerome Powell and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will testify before the Senate Banking Committee about the recovery and the government's 2020 stimulus bill. Their assessment and future action will undoubtedly take into account this week's jobs numbers. In New York, I'm Christine Romans.

ACOSTA: And the president of Ukraine says a group Russians and Ukrainians is planning to carry out a coup against him in the coming days. President Zelensky says he has audio of plotters discussing the plan and warns its set to happen between this Wednesday and Thursday. The Kremlin denies having any part in an alleged coup.

But Zelensky's claims follow weeks of growing concerns about unusual Russian military activity along the border with Ukraine. And joining me now is Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman. He testified about former President Donald Trump's dealings with Ukraine during Trump's first impeachment trial and he was the National Security Council's top Ukraine expert at the time. He is also the author of "Here, Right Matters: An American Story." [17:50:00]

Lieutenant Colonel, great to see you. We're actually getting to talk about your area of expertise, Ukraine.

ALEXANDER VINDMAN, FORMER EUROPEAN AFFAIRS DIRECTOR, NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL: Yes.

ACOSTA: What do you think about what Zelensky is saying? Do you believe him?

VINDMAN: It wouldn't surprise me. And frankly, the first thing that came to mind as soon as this was announced was the efforts to assassinate the prime minister of Montenegro a few years back, really, when Montenegro was preparing to join NATO, and there was this plot that the GRU was behind.

I think this is -- it doesn't surprise me that the GRU elements within their GRU are pursuing these types of enabling operations. What they are looking for is to potentially destabilize the government in Ukraine while they conduct maybe military offensive.

But really it's the -- to me, the most important thing is that there is a situation brewing on the border of Ukraine and Russia. In a lot of ways, it's a continuation of Russia's effort in 2014 that was driven by necessity and opportunity.

ACOSTA: Yes.

VINDMAN: Back then in 2014, there was no government in Ukraine. Ukraine had chosen the path of European integration and Russia was not going to let that happen. Ukraine is central to Russia's understanding of itself, to Russia's understanding of its place in the world.

And now what we see is a continuation of that enterprise, again, driven by necessity and opportunity. The necessity now is a little bit different than back then. They see their influence in Ukraine waning. They believed Ukraine would be a failed state on its own. That has proven false.

Ukraine is actually doing quite well. Relatively speaking, it's moved -- it made some significant advances in the political, economic, military spheres and Russia sees it slipping through its fingers. And at the same time, on opportunity side, they see the U.S. is distracted with a mis-calibrated pivot to China.

China is a long-term threat, but the immediate threats are centered on Eurasia and -- as well as internal instability in the U.S. and internal -- lack of cohesion here, all sorts of crises developing in Europe including greater leverage over Europe through gas and all these immigration crises that Russia is probably playing a hand in developing.

ACOSTA: Yes. And you obviously, you know, famously testified during the former president's first impeachment trial. Here we are coming up on the one-year anniversary of January 6th which led to his second impeachment.

And I'm just wondering, you know, as you're watching the House Select Committee investigating January 6th do its work, if they can't get some of these key Trump allies, people like Rudy Giuliani who you had to deal with during the whole Ukraine saga. If they can't get some of these key Trump allies to testify, and this thing gets dragged out in the courts, what happens, do you think?

VINDMAN: Well, I think there is --- time is limited. I think there is potentially a window up to 2022 and those congressional election, midterm elections, to take action because there is a good chance that Republicans could sweep in and gain control of Congress.

Now, you would think that President Biden's significant successes on the economic front with regards to policy should keep the Republicans at bay, the insurrection caucus at bay, the folks in the Republican Party that want a Donald Trump that spends more time golfing than actually, you know, doing the business of government.

But there is still a reasonable chance that they could sweep in in 2022. So it's a really limited time to take action. And I think part of the calculus for the Russians in Ukraine is that, again, the U.S. is distracted. The U.S. Is looking to the east, is looking to China. The U.S. is looking internally, and this is the opportunity to take action.

And what you could have is a range of different outcomes in Ukraine. You could have a very significant military escalation. A significant land grab on one end of the spectrum. And that's not -- that should not be discounted.

On the other side of the spectrum, what you have is a major demonstration that gets the U.S. to say, well, you know what, we don't need this other headache in Ukraine. We can back off. We have a focus on China. This is the opportunity to step back from Ukraine, but that's appeasement. That's not the way the situation gets resolved. The way the situation gets resolved is changing the Russian calculus for military hostilities in Ukraine.

ACOSTA: Do you think that the Russians took the Trump presidency as an overall sign of weakness from the U.S.? And what happens if Trump runs again? What do the Russians see?

VINDMAN: Right. I think they see enormous opportunities in another Trump administration. I'd say it's longer, unfortunately, than just President Trump's tenure. President Trump's tenure was a huge boon but even before that, in 2008, the Russians didn't suffer any consequences for their war in Georgia.

They've basically not been -- their maligned action, their aggression, has not received any firm response, and we see the product of that.

[17:55:01]

So that's why, when I talk about appeasement, it's this idea that, you know, we give the Russians what they want. We give them Ukraine, and somehow we could then, you know, buy their collaboration to help us pivot to China. This is a failed -- a flawed notion.

Now, I don't think that the Biden administration is that unsophisticated. They have lots of good people that are thinking about this. But the Russians in fact may be considering this as an option and that's one end of the spectrum.

ACOSTA: Yes.

VINDMAN: What cautions me that this might turn out to be something bigger is this notion that Ukraine slipping through their fingers and this is the time to act.

ACOSTA: And they may be desperate to act.

VINDMAN: That's right.

ACOSTA: All right. Colonel Vindman, great to see you again as always. Always enjoy having you come by.

VINDMAN: Thank you.

ACOSTA: Come by again soon. Appreciate it. Happy holidays. Thanks so much. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:59:59]