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Biden Outlines Plan to Fight COVID, Omicron Variant; Germany Locks Down the Unvaccinated as Cases Surge; Cases Rising Fast in South Africa as Omicron Spreads; Baldwin Speaks Out About Fatal "Rust" Shooting; Teachers Saw Red Flags About Suspect Before Attack. Aired 4- 4:30a ET

Aired December 03, 2021 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a very warm welcome to or viewers joining us in the United States and right around the world. I'm Isa Soares in London. And just ahead right here on CNN NEWSROOM.

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JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Now as we move into winter, we face the challenges of this new variant. This is a moment we can put the devices behind us, I hope.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What people shouldn't forget is, number one, that we have tools to protect ourselves. We've got to double down on using them. Vaccinations, masks, testing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What I think everybody didn't see was how rapidly and more aggressively Delta would come into the country. So, look, we made that mistake. I made that mistake.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: President Biden unveiling yet another major new COVID strategy as the Omicron variant hits the United States. Can a mistake made with the Delta variant help in in the fight against this new one?

Plus --

Actor Alec Baldwin speaks out on the deadly shooting on the set of his movie "Rust." Baldwin says he never pulled the trigger.

And she was sold into marriage with a 55-year-old man while cameras were rolling. This nine-year-old Afghan girl is now talking to CNN exclusively about being rescued.

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Isa Soares.

SOARES: Hello everyone. It is Friday, December 3rd. We begin with the United States President Joe Biden's new winter plan to fight the coronavirus pandemic. Now, he outlined the approach as now five U.S. states are reporting cases of the fast-spreading Omicron variant. They are California, Colorado, Hawaii, Minnesota and New York. The president's plan relies heavily on vaccines with boosters for all eligible adults and shots to protect kids. Tougher restrictions -- you can see on your screen -- on international travel are coming, as well as more than 60 rapid response teams available to state to fight outbreaks. CNN's chief White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins has all the details for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the still mysterious Omicron variant now in the U.S., today, President Biden laid out a new strategy to fight the pandemic.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My plan I'm announcing today pulls no punches in the fight against COVID-19.

COLLINS (voice-over): At the National Institutes of Health, Biden attempted a balancing act, preventing panic while taking aggressive steps to combat the spread of Omicron.

BIDEN: We move forward in the case of COVID-19 and the Delta variant and we'll move forward in the face of Omicron variant as well.

COLLINS (voice-over): Biden will impose stricter testing requirements on U.S. bound travelers, extend TSA's mask mandate, launch mobile family vaccine clinics, move to require private insurers to pay the cost of at home test and boost access for those without it. There are some caveats to Biden's new campaign, given insurance won't pay for past test purchases, and the rule likely will go into effect for at least six weeks.

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We expect to be have the final rules on this and have this implemented in mid-January. So, expect additional details about how it will work and the functioning of it will be out in that timeline.

COLLINS (voice-over): Americans are currently split on Biden's handling of the pandemic, with 44 percent approving while 48 percent disapprove.

The Kaiser Family Foundation survey finding that most fully vaccinated adults in the U.S. plan to get a booster, but nearly one in five say they probably or definitely won't despite CDC recommendations.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We need to be ready.

COLLINS (voice-over): Today, Biden making this appeal to stop the pandemic from being so political. BIDEN: I know COVID-19 has been very divisive in this country, has become a political issue, which is a sad, sad commentary. It shouldn't be, but it has been. This is a moment we can put the devices behind us, I hope.

COLLINS (voice-over): The President's attempts to mandate vaccines in some capacities has hit a slew of legal challenges and led to a political fight with Republicans on Capitol Hill.

BIDEN: While my existing federal vaccination requirements have been reviewed by the courts, this plan does not expand or add to those mandates.

COLLINS: And those new testing requirements to get into the United States on international flights requiring a negative test result within 24 hours instead of 72 hours, goes into effect at midnight Monday, December 6th.

Kaitlan Collins, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Thank you, Kaitlan.

Well, that divisiveness the president talked about just there has real and sometimes life and death consequential. Now a CNN analysis of data from Johns Hopkins University reveals that since vaccines have been widely available, the average risk of dying from COVID is 50 percent higher -- 50 percent higher, as you can see there -- in states that voted for Donald Trump than states that voted for Joe Biden.

[04:05:04]

Why, you ask? Well, consider this. According to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll, four in ten Republicans remain unvaccinated, compared to about one in ten Democrats. Joe Biden's former COVID response adviser said it is time for GOP leaders really to step up. Have a listen.

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ANDY SLAVITT, FORMER WHITE HOUSE SR. ADVISER FOR COVID RESPONSE: The message to you they're sending is not what they should be doing which is ideally standing shoulder to shoulder with the president and saying, hey, this is bad everywhere. We can fight about anything we want to in politics. We can argue over anything. But none of us want anybody to die. And for a party that has been willing --not willing to lift a finger to help fight the pandemic, they're going to a great deal of effort to fight people who are fighting the pandemic. And that just doesn't make sense. And so, they should partner up here because people in their own communities as you just said are the ones paying the heavy price.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, the U.S. Surgeon General says Omicron is a concern, but the country is in a different place in the pandemic than it was a year ago. Dr. Vivek Murthy told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on Thursday that Americans need to wait for more complete data on the new variant. This is what he said.

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DR. VIVEK MURTHY, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: I just want to emphasize how important this is with Omicron, because the news around this new variant has understandably worried to a lot of people. And I get it. It's been a long couple of years. But what people shouldn't forget is number one, that we have tools to protect ourselves. We've got to double down on using them, vaccination, mask, testing.

But we should also remember that there are unanswered questions about the variant. And we've got to be careful about taking the anecdote or the small bit of data that's going to pop up over the next few days. We've got to wait for all of it to come together. That's going to help us to understand more about this variant.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Well, how worried should we be about this Omicron variant?

MURTHY: Well, I think we should be concerned enough to pull out all the stops in answering three critical questions. Number one, is it more transmissible than Delta? We don't know yet, right? And number two, is it more severe in terms of the illness it causes. We don't know that either. And third, are vaccine efficacy impacted by this variant? And that also we don't have a clear answer to.

But one thing that we do know is that we're doing everything necessary to get those answers. We're working closely with our South African colleagues, with the researchers in the private sector, in academia and around the world to make sure we can get the answers. But it will take several weeks.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SOARES: More answers were left standing, of course. Well, more countries are restricting travel to southern Africa to try and really stem the spread of the Omicron variant. In the past few hours Cambodia has banned travel from 10 countries in the regions. Those are the countries there are ready with a variant of Omicron.

Well, CNN has correspondents positioned around the globe to bring you the very latest. The only way CNN can. Cyril Vanier is live for us in Paris. Fred Pleitgen is following developments for us in Berlin, Germany. David McKenzie is standing by in Johannesburg. And Blake Essig as you can see there is live for us covering the Asia-Pacific region. He's live for us in Tokyo.

I want to take you first to Germany where new cases are surging and the unvaccinated are now under a virtual lockdown. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is live for us with the latest. And, Fred, Germany pretty much getting tough on the unvaccinated with this de facto lockdown. And we could potentially enforce vaccines come in the new year. How is this all being received? FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well,

you're certainly absolutely right. The Germans certainly are getting tough on people who are unvaccinated. And it really has caused quite a debate here in Germany. One of the things that critics, for instance are saying, they're saying, look, this government said just a couple weeks ago, just a couple months ago that there would not be any sort of mandatory vaccinations here in Germany, and now it's clearly something that is very much in the cards.

But as we're speaking here right now, Isa, I'm also keeping an eye on a press conference by the German Health Minister who is speaking right now. And one of the things that he quite frankly said was he said that if all adults had gotten vaccinated, Germany wouldn't be in the situation that it is in right now. And certainly, that's the main reason why the government is now contemplating these very tough measures and following through on some other tough measures like, for instance, essentially locking unvaccinated people out of public life.

And we're not only talking about nonessential businesses, everything except super markets and pharmacies. We're also talking, for instance, things like indoor sports activities, cultural activities, restaurants and the like. So, it certainly is going to get tough for unvaccinated people.

Germany still in an extremely difficult situation. We saw early this morning that the case count of new coronavirus infections is up once again. One of the other things that the health minister has said right now is that he believes that the climax in ICUs, the worse things get in ICUs is actually going to be around Christmas time.

So, right now things not looking very good for Germany. And the Germans clearly holding responsible those who did not get vaccinated here in Germany. About 69 percent of the population is vaccinated. If you compare that to countries that are really doing well, like, for instance, Portugal, it really isn't enough, the government says.

[04:10:00]

SOARES: Yes, and I know you'll keep us updated on that press conference that is now ongoing, Fred, with the very latest. Do stay with us, Fred. I want to go to David in Johannesburg. And, David, we are seeing yet again a significant rise in COVID-19 cases with Omicron I believe fueling the surge. What are you hearing, David, from physicians this hour, as to the impact this is having on the vaccinated as well as the unvaccinated? Because I think we're looking at roughly 35 percent unvaccinated in South Africa.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Isa, and I think everyone is taking a deep breath here to really worry about what the impact of this variant will be here. And, of course, the impact here could tell you something about what it will be like for the rest of the globe, as incidents of this variant spread across the world. Worth remembering, the World Health Organization head said that's to be expected. As he put it, this is what viruses do.

There are some early indications this is more transmissible than Delta variant, meaning it's easier to pass to one person to the other. And also, some indications just today an announcement that it may be more likely to get reinfection. Meaning if you had COVID before, you might be able to get it again with this variant, though most likely a milder illness.

You asked about vaccinations. Yes, there is still a relatively low portion of people here vaccinated. The good news is that it appears that vaccines are staving off at this point severe illness from this variant, and so the message from the Health Minister was very clear.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE PHAAHLA, SOUTH AFRICAN HEALTH MINISTER: The evidence that is very clear thus far, is that like all previous variants, our best protection against serious illness lies with the vaccination. We must, therefore, not hesitate to take the vaccine because of this Omicron variant. The vaccination provides our best protection against serious illness and deaths.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: And the message is appropriate here, but of course for the whole world to stave off increased infection rates, vaccines clearly are key -- Isa.

SOARES: Indeed. David McKenzie for us in Johannesburg. Fred Pleitgen in Berlin this morning. Thank you very much to you both.

Of course, we'll have much more ahead on the Omicron variant with live reports from Cyril Vanier, as I promised, in Paris, and Blake Essig in Tokyo. Do stay with CNN NEWSROOM with the very latest on that. We'll take you there in 15 or so minutes.

Now, the U.S. government avoided a midnight shutdown after Congress passed a stopgap spending bill to keep the lights on until mid- February. They'll have to do it all over again in a couple months unless a budget is approved. I know, deja vu. The bill narrowly passed in the U.S. House earlier in the day and then sailed through the U.S. Senate late Thursday 69-28. But for a time, it appeared a small group of Senate Republicans might block it. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer finally announced the impasse had been resolved.

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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY) U.S. SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: I am pleased to announce that an agreement has been reached between Democrats and Republicans that will allow the Senate to take up and pass the continuing resolution to fund the government through February 18. With this agreement, there will be no government shutdown.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: And breathe a sigh of relief.

When former Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows gives a deposition next week in the January 6 investigation, his role in trying to discredit the election is likely to be a hot topic. New details are emerging about just how extensive his efforts were with Meadows reaching out to multiple government agencies to promote unfounded conspiracy theories and bogus claims of voter fraud.

Now, sources familiar with Meadows' actions say he did those things because he was too scared to stand up to Trump, not because he believed the election had been stolen. Meadows had indicated he will honor Trump's claims of executive privilege when he goes before the committee. But as one Democratic House member explained, claiming executive privilege is not as easy as it sounds.

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REP. ELAINE LUNA (D-VA): I certainly expect, due to his close role with the president and the close communications that he held with the president in his role of chief of staff, that there probably will be instances where he does try to use privilege to choose whether he will or will not answer questions. But, you know, as we get to that point of that interview and have the opportunity to address each of those claims individually, I think the committee will address them based on their merits. Unlike others who have tried to claim blanket executive privilege and as you've seen Mr. Bannon, for example, who was held in contempt of Congress for refusing to appear before the committee. We also have Mr. Clark who we anticipate will appear before the committee this weekend and we'll address each case individually.

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SOARES: We'll stay on top of that story for you, the deposition, of course, next week.

Now, teachers saw warning signs about the suspect before the gruesome school shooting in Michigan.

[04:15:00]

Still ahead, the community grieves as investigators look into the suspect's behavior just hours ahead of the attack.

Plus, Alec Baldwin opens up about the fatal shooting on the set of his film "Rust." that is next after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: Well, actor Alec Baldwin is opening up about the fatal shooting that occurred on the set of his film "Rust." Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was killed and director, Joel Sousa injured, when Baldwin's gun went off during a reversal. Now, in an interview with ABC News, Baldwin recalled being told by Hutchins to hold the gun out by her direction right below her armpit. He asked her if she wanted to see him cock the gun. She told him she did. And when Baldwin let go of the hammer, the gun fired. Now Baldwin said he never pulled the trigger and has no idea how a live bullet got in the Colt 45 revolver he used in the scene. Baldwin was asked during the interview if cost cutting measures could have led to a lapse in safety precautions. Here's his answer.

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ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR: When people say a cut in costs, I don't say this with any judgment or any cynicism.

[04:20:00]

Spielberg wants to save money. Tom Cruise wants to save money. Everybody who makes movies has a responsibility not to be reckless and careless with the money that you're given. Those are men who make movies that cost $205 million. And I'm making movies that cost $5 million.

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS: The question though is, were costs being cut at the expense of safety and security?

BALDWIN: In my opinion, no, because I did not -- no, I did not observe any safety or security issues at all in the time I was there.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Costs were not cutback.

Now, the town of Oxford, Michigan, is trying to make sense of the horrific school shooting. If you remember earlier this week, 15-year- old Ethan Crumbley was charged on Wednesday as an adult with murder, terrorism as well as other counts. A day earlier investigators say he went on a shoot being rampage at the local high school killing four students, seven other people were wounded in what was the nation's deadliest school shooting in three years. We are now learning that the two teachers saw red flags in his behavior in the run up to the attack. Alexander Field has the story for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have an active shooter incident. So far, we have confirmed injuries.

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): New revelations about what happened inside Oxford High School just hours before a shooting rampage Tuesday afternoon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Medical emergency, Oxford High School. The scene is not secure.

FIELD (voice-over): Investigators now saying two different teachers flagged the suspected shooter's behavior.

SHERIFF MICHAEL BOUCHARD, OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN: On the day prior to the tragedy, a teacher in a classroom where he was a student saw and heard something that she felt was disturbing in terms of his behavior. The day of the shooting, a different teacher in a different classroom saw some behavior that they felt was concerning.

FIELD (voice-over): Despite those concerns, the 15-year-old sophomore was allowed to go back to class, a decision now under investigation.

KAREN MCDONALD, OAKLAND COUNTY, MICHIGAN, PROSECUTOR: There's an additional piece of evidence that hasn't been released yet, but I can assure you it was troubling, it was disturbing, and unfortunately, he was allowed to go back to class.

FIELD (voice-over): Investigators say he was plotting the attack before it happened. Their evidence, a journal in which they say he talks about shooting up the school and two cell phone videos recorded the day before.

BOUCHARD: Horrendously disturbing. Obviously talks about what -- excuse me, he intends to do and the kinds of things he's thinking about. It's just chilling.

FIELD (voice-over): The focus also now on the suspect's parents. Officials say his father bought the semiautomatic handgun four days before the attack. An announcement on potential charges against the suspect's parents could come within 24 hours, the D.A. says.

MCDONALD: The shooter is going to be held accountable. And the people who bought and improperly stored and weren't responsible with that weapon have to be held accountable.

FIELD (voice-over): CNN has pressed the D.A. for more on whether evidence was recovered to support those potential charges and what charges are being considered, but she declined to go into detail. Four students lost their lives in the attack. Their friends now bearing the burden of grief.

JOSH BROWN, OXFORD HIGH SCHOOL 2021GRADUATE: Justin was just a great guy to be around. He always made you laugh, no matter what.

FIELD (voice-over): Michigan's Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, arriving at Oxford High School to pay respects at the empty building. More than 60 schools in the county are also closed because of copycat threats.

BOUCHARD: If you're making threats, we're going to find you.

FIELD: Investigators are continuing to look closely at the meeting that was held at the school with the suspect's parents. Law enforcement officials say they were not notified of the meeting or of the student's concerning behavior. They also say that the school resource officer assigned by the sheriff's department to the high school was not made aware as well. Key questions in the ongoing investigation.

In Oxford, Michigan, Alexandra Fields, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, the sheriff you saw in that report later went on into more specifics about how the school responded to Crumbley's behavior. This is what he told CNN's Wolf Blitzer who pressed him for the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOUCHARD: I can't articulate the exact nature of it because it is now part of our evidentiary process and we don't want to prejudice the process or trial. But I can tell you that two different teachers, one in the morning the day before, saw behavior they thought was troubling. School officials brought him down to the office and had a conversation the day of the shooting. And, by the way, they left message for the parents as well, both electronically and voice mail on that evening.

[04:25:00]

The next day a different teacher in a different classroom saw behavior that they found troubling and brought the individual down to the office and ultimately school officials talked with he and his parents the day of the shooting. But at no time were we looped into any of that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Now, the prosecution has rested in the trial of former "Empire" star Jussie Smollett after three days of testimony. The actor is accused of staging his own hate crime and falsely reporting it in January of 2019. Smollett who is black and gay allegedly paid two brothers to fake beat him up in order to gain media attention. The brothers provided the core testimony of the case. Plainly stating that the attack was always intended to be fake. Smollett has pleaded not guilty to six counts of disorderly conduct.

Still to come right here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'll take you to Paris on the latest of the Omicron variant. But first.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Blake Essig in Tokyo. This pandemic is far from over and World Health Organization officials said earlier today that the new variant Omicron will eventually be found in most countries here in the Asia-Pacific region and that now is the time to start preparing for the next surge.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Isa Soares. If you're just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories this hour.

He says he didn't pull the trigger, yet the gun still fired. Actor Alec Baldwin breaking his silence about the shooting on the set of his movie "Rust" that killed the film's cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and wanted the director, Joel Sousa. Baldwin says he was blocking out a scene determining exactly how to hold the revolver when he let go of the hammer on the gun which somehow had a live round in it and then, of course, it went off. Plus, Joe Biden is tightening the entry rules for international air

travelers as America reports the cases of the Omicron variant have been found in five states. The U.S. president has laid out his strategy for COVID testing as well as vaccinations. Mr. Biden said the U.S. will face the new variant without lockdowns.