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Remembering Harry Reid; Frustration Mounting Over Long Lines, Lack Of Tests; CDC Decision To Cut Isolation Time Draws Criticism. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired December 29, 2021 - 02:00:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Daily U.S. COVID cases hit an all-time high as the Omicron variant fuels yet another wave. Hospitals are filling up fast, and experts fear the peak is yet to come.

Mourning the loss of an American political icon. We take a look at the legacy of former Democratic Senator Harry Reid.

And U.S. President Joe Biden faces a number of domestic challenges heading into the New Year, where things stand now, what to expect in 2022.

So it has now been nearly two years since the first COVID case was confirmed in the United States. More than 200 million Americans are now fully vaccinated. And still, the country is breaking records for new infections, averaging more than 265,000 cases a day over the past week alone and that's according to Johns Hopkins University. Now the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report close to 450,000 cases on Monday alone.

It's a 24-hour period and that tops their previous one-day high of almost 300,000 back in January. Now we should point out these latest figures could be the result of a lag and reporting over the holidays. Nonetheless, the number of children now admitted to hospitals with COVID is nearing a new record. The CDC reports nearly a 50 percent jump in just the past week. Now access to testing remains a problem as you can see there right around the country.

Home test kits meantime are hard to find online and in stores and people are lining up for hours at drive thru testing sites right around the country. CNN's Alexander field has more now on COVID record setting rampage through the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): A new surge in COVID cases is bringing with it another spike in pediatric hospitalizations up nearly 50 percent in a week at nationwide. Children's still make up an extremely small percentage of people hospitalized for COVID and are still far less likely to become severely ill than adults. But hospitals have seen it before. Just last summer during the Delta surge. DR. ADRIENNE RANDOLPH, EXPERT FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE, BOSTON CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL: We have very high rates of hospitalization, very high rates of very severe illness. Children going on to Heartland bypass machines. A lot of teenagers especially. Most of these children had underlying conditions, but it also affected healthy children.

FIELD: In New York City, pediatric hospitalizations have gone up fivefold in three weeks. A hospital in Chicago reports a four-fold rise. It doesn't appear the Omicron variant is more dangerous for children, but it is highly transmissible and holiday gatherings could further fuel the surge in cases including among children. The age groups with the lowest vaccination rates in the country.

RANDOLPH: I would say we have not seen the worst of it yet.

FIELD: With cases climbing, staffing shortages are still crippling industries. Airlines canceling 1000s of flights this holiday season, Maryland's federal courts scaling back operations. Team USA Hockey forced to forfeit the World Juniors tournament. The CDC's latest guidance aims to put people back to work more quickly. But the recommendation to isolate for five days instead of 10 If infected but not symptomatic, comes also with criticism.

DR. MEGAN RANNEY, ACADEMIC DEAN OF PUBLIC HEALTH, BROWN UNIVERSITY: The trouble is for the unvaccinated, the data doesn't really back up that they become non-infectious at five days.

FIELD: Testing lines across the country are still intolerably long in too many places. And frustration is mounting over failures to make more at-home tests available more quickly.

DR. ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY'S SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: I hope we fix it in January and February. But we're going to have to have a real effort to make sure there's plentiful cheap, ubiquitous testing everywhere in the country. That's where we should be in this pandemic right now.

Alexandria field, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now hospital admissions may not be rising as quickly with the Omicron variant as they did with Delta thankfully, but staff shortages and the unvaccinated are still straining healthcare systems in several U.S. states. Now, here's the perspective of one critical care physician from Boston, who writes to the New York Times I worry about the insidious effect of the frustration that we feel and how we balance that real and understandable anger with empathy.

And if our units filled with coronavirus patients once again further stretching a healthcare system that is on the edge with severe staffing shortages. It will become even harder to navigate that tension.

Dr. Daniela Lamas is a pulmonary and critical care physician at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston. And she joins me now. And we thank you for giving us some of your time which we know is so precious these days.

[02:05:07]

NEWTON: You know, I have pictures of you when we talk about this war footing this frontline analogy. I picture you peering over that frontline. And what is it, right? It's that bad in the ICU. It's been two years now that you've been at this and yet your message, your editorial, what you want people to hang on to is optimism. Why?

DR. DANIELA LAMAS, PULMONARY AND CRITICAL CARE PHYSICIAN, BRIGHAM AND WOMEN'S HOSPITAL: You know, I think as you said, it has been two years and there are many ways that we could possibly frame where we are now. Of course, we all wish we were in a different place. We wish that this were done. At the same time we're in a place where people are yes, getting coronavirus. But people who are vaccinated, two shots and boosted, so fully vaccinated. The majority are not getting very sick. Yes, they are uncomfortable.

Yes, they have cold like symptoms, but people are not -- those patients are unlikely to end up in an intensive care unit, even in a hospital. And compared to where we were a year ago and definitely two years ago. That's entirely hopeful, you know, our vaccines work. We have medications now in addition to vaccines that work. And so yes, we're still not free of this, but we can live and have tools to live with it.

NEWTON: Yes. And I think it's puts into perspective, the miracle that those vaccines were and continue to be. That is also what caught my attention from your editorial. You know, you describe this moment where one of your colleagues in the ICU told one of his unvaccinated patients who had come through such a horrible illness and said, look, you -- it's OK, let go of your guilt or any shame that you have from not being vaccinated.

And you right that she had made a mistake. But what is the hospital if not a place where we care without judgment, for the many consequences of human fallibility. And I just thought it was put so well, when it comes to those unvaccinated, I will note that that patient did end up getting a shot. What is your advice to all of us? Because you're very, very unequivocal about the fact that some of us might be angry at those who are unvaccinated today.

LAMAS: And I think -- and I think that anger is appropriate. I think that we're in a place where a lot of people have a lot of right to be angry. And I think also that in addition to anger, there is the humility sort of to acknowledge that people come from many, many different worlds and different perceptions of medical system, I think not getting vaccinated is definitely a mistake, it is a fatal mistake, potentially.

And it is a mistake that does not just cost the person who is making the mistake. It costs those around them. And so, you know, I feel that outside the hospital, I feel that when somebody is walking down the street and, you know, if I know them, encounter them, and I'm unvaccinated, I should do everything in my power to get that person the vaccine. I shouldn't try to find ways to apologize for those actions.

But once someone is sick, once they're in the hospital, and once we are taking care of them and they're vulnerable, that we have to find some way, even if not to fully put that anger aside, but to accompany it with empathy, with kindness, with the knowledge that we are going to do everything we can for this person. And not just to make them better, but hopefully give them the tools to make better chances moving forward.

And that's a hard dynamic, you know, I think that that's -- that really threading that needle is what doctors and nurses even more so. We're going to have to be doing the next weeks and months and doing that well I think is a way to prevent against burnout and compassion fatigue. But that's not easy to do, because there is a lot of anger and that anger is justifiable. But it can't only be anger.

NEWTON: Absolutely. Because, as you said, with the people that are unvaccinated and ending up in hospital, the frontline health care workers, yourself, the nurses, everybody who's there trying to bring these people back to a healthy life. They're suffering through their own life, right? I mean, I can only imagine the sacrifices, the family sacrifices that all of you speak of right now.

LAMAS: Entirely, you know, the -- there are areas of the country where people are being pulled in for extra shifts, they're being made to leave their holidays, leave their families and worry about bringing things back to their families, even if they know that their families now that their lives are not in danger. There's a huge cascade of just to worry, anxiety and inconvenience and everybody in their overall world has somewhat immune compromised.

And so you go into the hospital, you still feel like you're bringing home risk, but I think that all of that dynamic is so different than it used to be. And I feel like we're reaching sort of the ideally, you know, toward the kind of light at the end of the tunnel so to speak, but to get there we're going to have to go through still needless death and I think of the unvaccinated and I think thinking about how we do that while remaining compassionate is a challenge that is before us as a healthcare system

[02:10:05]

NEWTON: Yes. But as you point out, a challenge that we can meet and that hopefully we will meet. Doctor, I thank you so much for your words of empathy. I hope that they are a comfort to many, and I hope for better things in the weeks to come for you and everyone in your hospital.

LAMAS: I do too. Thank you.

NEWTON: Now, the Omicron variant is also fueling a staggering wave of infections in parts of Europe. Take a look at this map. The countries in dark red have seen cases rise by 50 percent or more in the past week, compared to the week before. At least five countries reported record high new infections on Tuesday. Now Spain was among them. Nearly 100,000 new cases. Not only is that their highest one day total since the pandemic began, it's also double the previous record set just last week.

For more we're joined by CNN's Melissa Bell live in Paris. What a glimpse really into what Europe is dealing with right now. And you are in France, where again, they are in uncharted territory when it comes to the numbers. What are officials doing to try and cope there?

MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We heard a vaccination center, Paula, where they're expecting a sort of uptick in demand because one of the things that was announced here in France on Monday was that they would shorten the amount of time between that second dose and the booster to try and get more and more people boosted to face which you described, quite rightly, at this extraordinary wave that is now sweeping across Europe. 179,000 new cases in a 24 hour period.

That's what's been announced here in France. It is an astonishing figure, when you put it in the context of the previous waves that we've had here, Paula, we'd already seen a record shattering 100,000 On Christmas Day. We're nearly at double that. It's just quite extraordinary how fast this is rising. And all attempts being made limiting gatherings, many New Year's Eve cancellations throughout Europe to try and prevent those healthcare systems from being swarmed, Paula.

NEWTON: We just went through kind of the issues in Europe as well. What are they also cope -- coping with?

BELL: Well, what we're seeing is -- and I think this is something that's Europe wide, record daily rises, but fewer people entering ICU few -- fewer people entering hospital and yet, the World Health Organization, warning that we mustn't be complacent about that. They are still warning, Paula, that this wave, this latest rise in new cases will lead to some healthcare systems here in Europe being overwhelmed.

Just because the Omicron virus is looking like it is leading to less mild forms because more people have been vaccinated and so on and so forth. We are still talking about healthcare systems under the weight of that sheer rise in the number of new cases being overrun. Take Germany, for instance, where they've had a very steep rise over the course of the last few weeks. Many measures have been taken.

And yet, only one-sixth of the country's ICU beds are now available. That gives you an idea of how close Europe is getting to the brink into the point that has been trying to avoid every time there's been a wave of healthcare systems being overrun. And this is something that we're seeing in many European countries, healthcare systems once again being brought to breaking point, Paula.

NEWTON: Yes. Just chilling to really think through the implications when we go back to those record setting numbers in last 24 hours. Melissa Bell for us in Paris. Thank you. Now we look back on the lives of two renowned Americans ahead. The legacy of Democratic Senator Harry Reid and his impact on U.S. presidents. And the sports world is mourning the loss of a much beloved and iconic NFL coach and broadcaster. Tributes to the late John Madden. That's next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:17:34]

NEWTON: Tributes are pouring in for a titan of the US Senate. Former Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid died on Tuesday following a four-year battle with pancreatic cancer. Now President Joe Biden wrote, I've had the honor of serving with some of the all-time great Senate majority leaders in our history. Harry Reid was one of them. And for Harry, it wasn't about power for powers sake. It was about the power to do right for the people.

Reid also played a key role in the rise of Barack Obama. On Tuesday, Obama shared a recent letter he sent to read, "I wouldn't have been president had it not been for your encouragement and support and I wouldn't have gotten most of what I got done without your skill and determination."

CNN's Danna Bash now has more on the legacy of Harry Reid.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANNA BASH, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: He led Democrats in the Senate for a decade, but Harry Reid called one of his proudest accomplishments, the impact he had on presidential history, encouraging Barack Obama to run.

HARRY REID, FORMER NEVADA LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR: He did call into my office and told me I should take a look at it and he was stunned that (INAUDIBLE) the first one that ever suggested that time. When he was reelected that was one of the most moving phone calls I've ever received because he said, you know, you're the reason I'm here.

BASH: He spearheaded epic legislative battles like Obamacare with a scrappy style he learned during his impoverished childhood.

Reid was born, shaped and scarred in Searchlight Nevada, essentially a truck stop outside Las Vegas. He grew up in a shack with no running water where this trailer now sits. He took us there in 2006. His mother did laundry for the local brothels. His dad always looking for work as a minor. Both drank heavily. During that 2006 visit to Searchlight he casually pointed out where his father took his own life at 58 years old.

REID: This house right here, that last room is the bedroom, that's where he killed himself.

BASH: He fought his way out of poverty as a boxer. As a politician he was never afraid to punch below the belt. He even took on the mob as a young politician in Las Vegas.

A wide variety of adjectives have been written about you.

REID: Some good, some bad.

BASH: Some good, some bad. Let me just read a few. Scrappy, toughie, blunt, canny behind the scenes mastermind, ruthless. All those fair?

[02:20:07]

REID: Well, that's what people think. That's what they think they're entitled with their opinion.

BASH: As Senate Democratic Leader, Reid was a polarizing figure. Republicans argued a lot of Congressional gridlock stemmed from his hardball tactics.

REID: Clean the turning of the tide.

BASH: But he reveled in playing the political bad guy calling then President George W. Bush a loser and a liar well before politicians use those L words.

REID: I don't really care. I don't want to be somebody I'm not.

BASH: During the Trump presidency, however, Reid changed his tune about Bush.

REID: In hindsight, I wish every day for a George Bush again. I think that he and I had our differences. But no one ever questioned his patriotism. There's no question in my mind that George Bush would be Babe Ruth, in this lead that he's in with Donald Trump. Donald Trump wouldn't make the team.

BASH: In 2012 he used the Senate floor to accuse Mitt Romney of not paying his taxes, even though he had no evidence.

REID: He's refused to release his tax returns, as we know. Let them prove that he has paid taxes because he hasn't.

No, I don't regret that at all.

BASH: Some people have even called it McCarthyite.

REID: Well, they call it whatever they want. He didn't win, did he?

BASH: Years later, Reid did ask to meet with Romney to make amends.

REID: Shook hands and puts up behind us.

BASH: Why was it so important for you to tie up that loose end?

REID: I try to do that with everybody.

BASH: Reid also inspired fierce loyalty from many of his longtime aides as well as fellow senators. Not all out of fear, but affection. He often told colleagues, he loved them, even in public.

REID: I love you, John Kerry.

BASH: He had a storybook romance with wife Landra, his high school sweetheart. The two converted to Mormonism together when they married.

REID: She had a pair of Levi's, just as a man that looks so good.

BASH: That's amazing.

REID: That is true.

BASH: In January 2015, Reid a workout addict who ran numerous marathons had a brutal exercise accident that left him severely bruised and blind in one eye. It cemented his decision to retire. A few years later, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Th1e effects of chemo made it hard for him to walk. We went to see him in Las Vegas.

REID: That's one of my keepsakes from Donald Trump.

BASH: Never any complaints.

REID: I'm doing fine. I'm busy. I work quite hard.

BASH: Reid was an unlikely political leader and today's media age. Soft spoken and gaffe prone. But he played the inside game like no one could.

REID: I didn't make it in life because my athletic prowess. I didn't make it because of my good looks. I didn't make it because I'm a genius. I made it because I worked hard. One of the things that I hope that people look back at me and say, if Harry Reid could make it, I can't.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: And our thanks there, Dana Bash for that look back at the life of Harry Reid. And now to the world of American football and the sad news that legendary coach and iconic broadcaster John Madden has died. Madden was beloved for his gregarious style. For many his voice and personality redefined sports commentary. And he left his name to video games becoming the namesake of the hugely successful Madden series.

Now the National Football League announced his death on Tuesday at the age of 85. The league's Commissioner Roger Goodell paid tribute to Madden saying, "Nobody loved football more than coach. He was football. He was an incredible sounding board to me and so many others. There will never be another John Madden, and we will forever be indebted to him for all he did to make football and the NFL what it is today."

CNN's Andy Scholes has more now on the life of John Madden.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN MADDEN, AMERICAN FOOTBALL COACH: I have never worked a day in my life. I went from player to coach to a broadcaster and I am the luckiest guy in the world.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Super Bowl winning coach, pioneering broadcaster, video game icon. A larger than life personality, John Madden was by any definition, a true original. During his 30-year broadcasting career, Madden was widely considered the voice of the National Football League.

MADDEN: You have to attack them with the passion, you have to attack them deep with the passion.

SCHOLES: His passionate way of calling games with unique catch phrases.

MADDEN: Packers came out. They went boom and they got 10 points.

SCHOLES: And a love for using a Telestrator helped explain the game to hardcore and casual fans across America. He called NFL games for all four major networks announcing 11 Super Bowls and earning 16 Sports Emmys during his time in the broadcast booth. Madden's NFL playing career was short lived. He was drafted in 1958 by the Philadelphia Eagles but a knee injury cut it all short. That's when he decided to try his hand at coaching.

[02:25:09]

SCHOLES: Eventually becoming the youngest head coach in professional football history at the age of 33. In 1977, he led the Oakland Raiders to a Super Bowl victory and is still the franchise's all time wins leader. Madden was inducted into the Pro-Football Hall of Fame for his coaching career in 2006.

MADDEN: Boom. Tough actin tinaction.

SCHOLES: Madden was a television advertisers dream becoming the pitch man for numerous brands.

MADDEN: Let me tell you (INAUDIBLE) is a place for me.

SCHOLES: In 1988, Madden enter the video game world lending his voice and name to what's now called Madden NFL.

MADDEN: (INAUDIBLE) it goes that far that fast (INAUDIBLE) to have dinner and an in flight movie.

SCHOLES: His video game is still the most popular football video game ever selling more than 100 million copies worldwide. Whether it was his video game, his broadcasting career or as a Hall of Fame coach, his passion for the game is what will always be remembered.

MADDEN: Some of us think maybe we will be immortal, that we'll live forever. But when you really think about it, we're not going to be. But I say this through this bust with these guys in that hall, we will be forever.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Christine Brennan is a CNN sports analyst and sports columnist at USA Today. And she joins me now. I mean, Christine, we could fill books and many people have about describing this man and what he means to football. The NFL said as much in a statement and was quite definitive about what he means. But I think for people who perhaps aren't football fans, can you explain the fact that as far as football and sport is concerned that he's also a cultural icon?

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: Oh, absolutely. Paula, John Madden is larger than life and was larger than life literally and figuratively. He was every man. He was a great coach, and retired age 42 with a Super Bowl win and one of the great -- greatest winning percentages ever. So just as a coach, he was amazing. But then, he became an American icon. He went into the television booth. And he was the personification of the sport of NFL football.

The game as it was exploding in American consciousness. There was a time when the NFL was not the biggest league in the country. That Major League Baseball was our national pastime and other sports were all kind of vying for that title. We had a lot of interest in a lot of different sports. And the NFL just exploded and became our number one sport. And the Super Bowl was a national holiday.

And, you know, all of those things that the NFL is now, John Madden helped to make that possible by bringing to the game to the masses, by being so human, so relatable, so fun, so bombastic. And just it's such a real person in that booth and that voice that really brought Americans to the game of football in a way that had not been done before.

NEWTON: In terms of how you describe him, and he is beloved, we are not exaggerating this by any stretch. You said bombastic though, and I think -- do you feel that the game has moved on in a way or do you think it will always be typified by what someone like John Madden brought to that play by play? What his voice and his commentary brought to what was going on in the field?

BRENNAN: The NFL certainly wouldn't be what it is today, Paula, it worked out for John Madden. But yes, he does, in some ways seem like a figure from another time. I think the -- just being so real. He didn't have to work at it. That was his personality. I knew him just a little bit. And he was a delight and a joy. And there were -- he wasn't putting on airs. He wasn't anything more than what he was.

And I -- certainly there are announcers out there who are terrific. But no one that quite captured the game like John Madden. He worked for every network. You know, he literally went from one to the next. And then of course, you throw in the commercials which he was so well known for. And you throw in the video game, you know, is gaming and the Madden football game.

You know, there are people who are probably in their 30s who didn't even know he was an NFL coach because he had the second act and this third act and what have you. So, you know, maybe he's from a different time. But the NFL was so fortunate to have had him. He really loved this game and he brought the game into the 20th -- end of the 20th century and into the 21st century.

[02:30:00]

BRENNAN: And is -- it will be remembered for that as the NFL was starting these glory days for the game and its popularity, there was John Madden leading Americans by the hand, you know, and having so much fun. You know, the telestrator drawing on it and all these pictures and all these circles and even sometimes circle the Gatorade because there was going to be a Gatorade bath for the coach. You know, he had fun doing it. It was always a game. It was sport. It wasn't so serious. And I think maybe that's something that's missing now.

NEWTON: Well, no doubt more tributes coming in in the hours and days to come. Christine, thanks so much for lending your voice to his legacy. Appreciate it.

BRENNAN: My pleasure, Paula. Thank you.

NEWTON: Coming up here on CNN Newsroom, the U.S. president faces mounting challenges as he wraps up his first year in office. A look back and forward, of course, with our CNN political analyst. That's just ahead.

And the U.S. and Russia will meet to discuss security issues soon, but an agreement could still be elusive. Details on that ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: The Biden administration has pushed back on document requests from the House Committee investigating the July 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol. Now, as a result, the panel will be standing down on requests for some documents from the Trump White House, specifically hundreds of pages of national security council records.

Now, the Biden White House said these documents appear to have no content that might be material to the investigation and it wants to keep the record secret to preserve the confidentiality of discussions around the presidency.

[02:35:00]

Now, for President Joe Biden, meantime, his administration is now facing a number of domestic challenges from a fast-growing COVID surge to a stalled economic and social spending package. And with midterms less than a year away now, Democrats hope he'll be able to turn things around in 2022.

Sabrina Sadiki is a CNN political analyst and White House reported at the "Wall Street Journal." And she joins me now from Washington.

Really good to see you.

And, you know, I've been reading kind of what you think is on the map here for Democrats. You know, you point out that, look, the picture for Biden is mixed. He's brought back civility. The battle against COVID had shown progress. Vaccinations were higher. They were supporting schools. The economy is decent. Infrastructure bill, check- check. Sabrina, it doesn't feel like that. It doesn't even feel like a mixed picture for this administration. Why?

SABRINA SADIKI, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think in some ways it's because the honeymoon period for the Biden administration is over and it sort of split the year into the first and second half where there was this sense of stability that President Biden brought back to Washington after the tumultuous four years of the Trump administration and, you know, with the drive to increase vaccinations against COVID- 19, the COVID relief package that he signed into law, Democrats passed earlier this year, there was a sense people were starting to get their lives back.

And then things took a turn in the second half of the year when you had the chaotic exit from Afghanistan, his approval rating started to fall. The Delta surge also happened. And now, he's closing out the year with this separate wave sugared by the Omicron variant. And again, COVID, which was the issue that was dominant when he took office, is also center stage at the end of his first year in office.

And so, although he has gotten some big items done, like his infrastructure bill, there is still a sense that not enough has been done, especially with Democrats having control of both majorities in Congress and facing the reality they may not have those majorities for very long.

NEWTON: Yes, and when you take it to the Build Back Better bill that now just seems completely stalled, and they may try and do some of it piecemeal, do you think that's it? That we've seen the best days of basically the Biden administration in this Congress?

SADIKI: Well, it's hard to say because the way that these negotiations on Build Back Better -- the Build Back is really the central economic priority for Biden, you know, really stalling once again and showing no signs of any breakthrough. Hard to say that they're actually going to be able to get it done, right. And, you know, this is really his top domestic priority.

Can they even do it piecemeal is the question because, you know, they were trying to do this through the process where they could pass it on a simple majority vote. They don't even have buy-in from all 50 Democrats in the Senate. And, you know, can they do some of the big- ticket items like child care or expanding health care as separate standalone bills? It's not clear the Senate rules would allow for that.

So, I think, you know, if he isn't able to get really what is the pillar of his economic agenda passed, that would be a real big blow to the administration because it really would signal that perhaps the infrastructure compromise was really going to be his single-biggest accomplishment and that there may not be much else he can do, especially in a midterm election year where it's already that much harder to get big legislation passed simple because lawmakers start focusing more on their reelection campaign and less on the business on Capitol Hill.

NEWTON: Yes. For some of us the midterms might seem far away, about 11 months away now. And yet, no, it's just around the corner. I want to get to Harry Reid, you know, the tributes continue to pour in on someone who was a pivotal figure for the Democrats at another very, very important time. Certainly, aligned with Obamacare and getting the Affordable Care Act passed. Harry Reid has been warning the Biden administration, though, that when it comes to the legacy going forward, whether it has to do with voting rights or having a Supreme Court with some kind of balance, that perhaps they weren't going about it the right way. Do you think his words will continue to ring in the ears of Democrats in the months to come?

SADIKI: I think absolutely. And, you know, Harry Reid is someone who was known for his own progressive politics, but he was also very successful at getting a lot of President Obama's agenda through when he was leader of the Senate during that period. And so, you know, one of the criticisms that Democrats are facing is that, yes, they have this very narrow majority in the Senate. In fact, a narrow majority in both chambers. But they haven't been willing to change the rules of the Senate, which would allow them to pass more of Biden's agenda.

Now, Biden needs support from all 50 Democrats, even to change the rules. But if they don't do that, then you're basically doing away with the possibility of getting a Voting Rights bill through, getting police reform through, immigration reform. And then, again, there is still this open-ended question around the future of Biden's economic agenda.

[02:40:00]

I really think that progressives feel the time is now. And, you know, if you're looking at the prospect of Republicans taking back either the House or the Senate in the midterm elections, if not both, then you can essentially say that Biden is going to be a lame duck president.

NEWTON: Yes. Already. We are not even a year into his presidency and there you go. Sabrina Sadiki, thank you so much. Really appreciate your insights.

SADIKI: Thank you.

NEWTON: U.S. and Russian officials will be holding security talks on January 10th, and they'll come to the table with relations strained over Russian troops still amassing on Ukraine's border. Now, earlier with Moscow now insisting on certain security guarantees, CNN's Nic Roberson has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: So, these January 10th talks really could be the first opportunity for a diplomatic off ramp for the growing tensions of Russia's troop buildup along the border with Ukraine. President Putin has been very clear about what he wants, legally binding guarantees, though in his mind, he views, stop NATO's eastward expansion, which he sees as a security threat to Russia.

He said that NATO should not take Ukraine in as a full member. That NATO members themselves should not base troops and military equipment inside Ukraine. Those are the guarantees he wants. U.S. officials are saying, look, Russia can put their concerns on the table. We'll put our concerns on the table as well about this troop buildup, about other issues. U.S. also is saying, we'll be talking on the basis, on the principled basis that nothing about our allies and partners without our allies and partners being there, meaning at the table, that would be NATO and Ukraine, too.

So, the U.S. has got its very clear positions on this. They're also saying -- U.S. officials are also saying, that, look, we may be able to agree on some things, but there will be things quite potentially that we'll disagree on. It's very unclear if President Putin is willing to accept those kinds of continuing disagreements. He is looking for absolute clarity on NATO's position on Ukraine and may not be willing to accept ambiguities in any outcome in these talks.

What is also unclear the 10,000 troops that Russia's military said that they withdrew from close to the border over the weekend, they say they withdrew them because they finished their military exercises, their military training, it's not clear if they took their military hardware away with them. It's not clear if they'll be coming back again. It's not clear what's happening to tens of thousands of other Russian troops that are along that border. It's not clear if there will be potentially other Russian troops coming to do military exercises and military training that Russia says they are very much entitled to do on their own territory, close to the border with Ukraine.

So, a lot of ambiguity, a lot of possible paths still ahead. Nic Robertson, CNN, Moscow.

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NEWTON: Still ahead here, 13 million people unable to leave their homes as China steps up efforts to contain a local COVID outbreak.

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NEWTON: Chinese authorities are tightening lockdown rules in the City of Xi'an to stamp out a local outbreak. Now, the city's13 million residents are now under strict stay-at-home orders and only allowed to go out for COVID testing. China has been rigidly enforcing its zero COVID policy ahead of the Beijing Winter Olympics.

Now, the policy had major travel -- had made travel very difficult to get into the country. Delta Airlines has a flight from Seattle to Shanghai, actually turned around mid-air last week because of new cleaning rules at the Chinese airport.

For more on all this, we are joined by CNN's Steven Jiang standing by for us live in Beijing.

Now, of course, cases remain low by global standards. You always remind us of this, Steve. But this lockdown entering its second week, give us some insight into what it looks like, what it's like to be in that city right now? STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Paula, the situation Xi'an certainly starts to feels a lot like a deja vu from what we saw in Wuhan some two years ago with a growing amount of frustration or even anger being vented online by people in Xi'an who say they now have difficulties access to food items. That, of course, in sharp contrast to officials and state media portrayal of smooth and orderly deliveries of daily necessity items throughout a city by the government.

Now, this situation, obviously, has been made worse because of tightened regulations. Last week, each household was still being allowed to send out one representative every other day to do grocery shopping. That "privileged" has been suspended starting this week as the authorities there try to further restrict the movement of people to curb the community spread of the virus because of the zero COVID policy you mentioned. And that policy, of course, from Chinese government's perspective has been working well for them when officials point to the fast spread of Omicron outside of Chinese borders.

But that also means in Xi'an, authorities are really doubling down on their strategy. Mass testing, mass quarantine and now, harsher lockdown measures. Now, the numbers, as you mentioned, still were pretty small by international standard, but pretty grim by Chinese standard, 151 new cases recorded on Tuesday. But authorities say this is only to be expected as they keep testing the entire population of 13 million people actually, as we speak, Paula. They just started the sixth round of city-wide testing. But they say with a strict lockdown in place, they will be able to bring this to an end in a month or so, but that obviously is cold comfort for millions of people trying to survive now under harsh conditions. Paula.

NEWTON: Yes, yes. Most restrictions -- those kinds of restrictions most people outside of China can't imagine. Steven, thanks for the update. Appreciate it.

Now, Hong Kong police, meantime, have arrested at least six staffs and associates of the pro-democracy outlet Stand News. Now, officials say they are suspected in conspiracy to publish seditious material. A blanket charge which has been used to cut down press freedoms in the city. Police also visited the home of a seventh employee who was led away by officers according to the Hong Kong Journalist Association. Although the stand confirms he was not arrested. The company's offices have been raided by police who say they collected at least 30 boxes of evidence.

Two close encounters in space. How Elon Musk and SpaceX Satellite is catching heat in China. We'll have the details ahead.

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NEWTON: China has filed a complaint with the United Nations. It is claiming close encounters with two satellites launched by Elon Musk's SpaceX endangered its astronauts and its space station. CNN's Ivan Watson has the details now from Hong Kong. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: China is lashing out at SpaceX founder, Elon Musk, saying that two of his satellites endangered Chinese astronauts. In a complaint filed with the U.N. Space Agency, Beijing says two satellites from Musk's Starlink Network flew too close to the country's space station, forcing it to take evasive maneuvers. The report says the incidents took place in July and October.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Liftoff.

WATSON: Starlink is an internet service developed by SpaceX with a constellation of around 2,000 low orbit satellites. During a briefing on Tuesday, China's foreign ministry spokesperson urged the U.S. to act responsibly in space.

ZHAO LIJIAN, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESMAN (through translator): The United States repeatedly claims to have its own so-called concept of responsible conduct in outer space, but it ignores its international treaty obligations concerning outer space, posing a serious threat to the safety of astronauts. This is a typical double standard.

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WATSON: But SpaceX is a private company, and the tensions point to the larger issue of how to manage traffic in space as more countries and companies now have space capabilities, where near misses between objects happen often. An astronomer at the Harvard Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics says the International Space Station has had to avoid debris created by China's 2007 military anti-satellite test several times in recent years. But now, it's the richest person in the world who is catching heat.

ELON MUSK, FOUNDER, SPACEX: It's going to be a very exciting future.

WATSON: Musk spent years winning over Chinese authorities so his electric car maker, Tesla, could make inroads where other foreign companies could not. But the billionaire's reputation has been tainted by a run of bad publicity, including a recall of most Tesla cars that were built in Shanghai. SpaceX has not responded to CNN's request for comment. So. we'll just have to wait and see how the outspoken entrepreneur responds to this space challenge from Beijing.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Hong Kong.

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NEWTON: I am Paula Newton. I want to thank you for your company. And I will be right back with more CNN Newsroom in just a moment.

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NEWTON: And a warm welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. I'm Paula Newton. Ahead right here on CNN Newsroom, daily U.S. COVID cases hit an all- time high as the Omicron variant fuels yet another wave. Hospitalizations are rising and experts fear the peak --

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