Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

President Biden Provides Updates on Conversation With Putin; TV Icon Betty White Dead at 99. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired December 31, 2021 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:01:29]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

RYAN NOBLES, CNN HOST: Good afternoon, everyone, top of the hour. I'm Ryan Nobles.

And we do have some sad breaking news on this New Year's Eve.

Comedian and actress Betty White has died just days shorter for 100th birthday. This is according to her agent, who spoke to "People" magazine. CNN has not learned the cause of her death right now.

But joining me now to talk more about the life and legacy of Betty White -- or, actually, we're going to go to CNN's Stephanie Elam, who has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In 1949, Betty White played a sidekick on a live afternoon show in Los Angeles. It ran about five hours a day, at least five days a week.

BETTY WHITE, ACTRESS: At that point, television was just starting, and nobody had any idea it was going to change the world.

ELAM: She went on to appear in sitcoms and game shows, winning hearts with her sweet smile and sharp wit. She was also one of the earliest female producers in Hollywood.

Her breakout roles included man-hungry Sue Ann on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show" and seven seasons as the lovable, but naive Rose on "The Golden Girls."

WHITE: And they attack chickens.

(LAUGHTER)

RUE MCCLANAHAN, ACTRESS: I don't care about chickens, Rose. She didn't call me chicken. She called me peacock.

WHITE: You look more like a chicken when you're angry. Your neck sticks out.

(LAUGHTER) ELAM: The actress and comedian amassed a collection of Emmys, SAG Awards and even a Grammy.

In 2010, she was presented a lifetime achievement award by the Screen Actors Guild.

WHITE: When they called me, I fell off the couch. I couldn't believe it.

ELAM: A devoted pet lover, White was a longtime advocate for animal rights.

WHITE: Television is my hobby. Animals are my work.

ELAM: Though she never really dropped from the scene, White's career got a second wind in 2010 after she starred in a Snickers Super Bowl commercial.

UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: You're playing like Betty White out there.

WHITE: That's not what your girlfriend said.

ELAM: The popularity of the spot sparked a campaign on Facebook advocating for White to host "Saturday Night Live." She brought the show its highest ratings in nearly two years.

WHITE: You know, it's an accomplishment, staying awake on the toilet.

(LAUGHTER)

ELAM: After that success, White seemed to be everywhere, in movies and TV shows, including a starring role in the sitcom "Hot in Cleveland."

She published books and even a calendar. White was voted America's favorite and most trusted celebrity in a 2011 Reuters poll. She had a sense of humor about her newfound ubiquity.

WHITE: Well, if you thought you couldn't get rid of me before, now you're really stuck with me.

(LAUGHTER)

ELAM: White was a comic pioneer whose celebrity transcended generations.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBLES: Thank you, Stephanie Elam, for that report.

Joining me now, CNN's chief media correspondent and the host of "RELIABLE SOURCES," Brian Stelter, and also joining me, CNN media analyst Bill Carter. He's a former "New York Times" media reporter.

Thank you to both of you for joining me. Bill, you know, I think it is kind of a good place to start when we talk about that "Saturday Night Live" appearance that she made in her late 80s. It was part of a viral Internet campaign, which is what you wouldn't expect with someone who is a classic television star.

Does that really kind of encapsulate Betty White's career? I mean, it puts to a certain extent an incredible bookend to what was just a remarkable life.

BILL CARTER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: It kind of puts a cherry on top, really, because, I mean, she had done quite an amazing amount of television, and all spectacularly well done.

I mean, she was a really underrated talent. This was a woman with great comic timing, superb comic timing. But then she's in her late 80s, they put her on "Saturday Night Live." That is not an easy thing to host that show. It's very tough.

[15:05:04]

And she pulled it off, because that was a show business pro down to her toes. I mean, this lady was exquisite in the way she could perform and so likable. She was so universally likable. That is very unusual in a person in show business.

NOBLES: And, Brian, you talked last hour about the statement from her agent that kind of lamented the fact that he thought that she'd lived forever.

And I think part of that was born out of a performance like that on "Saturday Night Live," right? When someone in their late 80s come out and -- can come out and just nail something that difficult, it made you think that she had kind of an ability to never leave this Earth, because she just was so remarkable even at an old age.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: And that's what many of her Hollywood colleagues over the years are saying now, including Seth Meyers from "SNL," who said on Twitter it is now it's the only "SNL" host he ever saw get a standing ovation at the end of a show.

And he said, she stayed at the party, ordered a vodka, had a hot dog, stayed until the bitter end of the party after "SNL."

And I love what Bill said about her comedic timing, because we are talking about an entertainer, someone who knew how to make a room or millions of people light up and laugh.

Sandra Bullock said once about Betty White that: Timing isn't easy in comedy, because you have to navigate other people's timing. But Betty pivots like no one I have ever seen, making it look seamless.

That is an incredible skill. It's a form of improv when you can navigate with other actors and actresses. In fact, back in 1951, when she was first nominated for an Emmy, they had to create a new category for her. They created best actress on television because TV was a new medium. They had not had a woman nominee like that before, a best actress category.

So, think about her going all the way back to the dawn of TV, and then into "SNL" in the streaming age. Some people grew up watching her on "Golden Girls" when it was originally on the air. Others watched the reruns, which became popular years later.

So it is that one-of-a-kind ability to connect generations that I think is so special, and it's why people were previewing her upcoming birthday. This is -- this is so bittersweet now that she has passed on. But even weeks ago, there were news stories looking forward to her birthday party in January.

Who can you say that about in American life or anywhere in the world, for that matter, people looking forward to her turning 100? And, of course, now it takes on a somber note.

NOBLES: Yes.

You know, Bill, getting back to Brian's point about "The Golden Girls," the three of us are all in the television business. We know...

CARTER: Yes.

NOBLES: ... television executives tend to want to pitch to younger audiences, and those key demographics are always younger audiences.

What was going through the minds of these TV executives that were pitched a show about a group of retired women?

CARTER: Right.

NOBLES: And who on earth would have ever thought that it would have become the cultural phenomenon that it became, in large part because of Betty White and her performance?

CARTER: It was an absolutely crazy idea at the time. And it was on NBC, which, of all the networks, was the one that was hitting that younger demographic, and hitting it spectacularly.

But they had a great writer, Susan Harris, who created the show. They had tremendous actresses, four great actresses. And it was just funny. And, frankly, people need to ignore everything else in comedy. If you're funny, you're funny. That's the way it works.

And the thing about Betty White is, what Brian was saying about the way she could play with other people's timing, if you're in television, and you're doing live comedy like that, with an audience laughing, you have so many things to think about. You're setting up the joke, you're listening to the other people, and then, when you get a laugh, you have to time your next line.

And Betty White did this throughout a career. I mean, she started, as Brian -- in 1951. The whole history of sitcom she is involved in. And because she was so adept at it, she -- even in "Hot in Cleveland," when she's much, much older, she was able to do it. And, frankly, even when she's in her 90s, she would be on with Jay

Leno on "The Tonight Show" doing all these stunts with him. She was so game, always game to be funny. And -- but she could rely on that timing. She knew she could hit a line and she could be clever and come back with a line, an amazing talent, really an amazing talent.

NOBLES: And Bill mentioned this before.

Brian, you and I talked about it last hour, but the idea that she was universally beloved. You would be hard-pressed to find someone who said they hated Betty White. I mean, that is remarkable at any period of time, but especially remarkable in 2021, right, Brian?

STELTER: Yes.

And I was grateful to hear during her interviews throughout the years, including some that Stephanie Elam shared with us, she was -- there was always a little bit of humility with her through it all, even as she was being lauded and been given lifetime achievement awards.

She appreciated that she was still in the business, still in the game, still getting parts, still getting auditions. There was a humility to her that is significant. And, of course, that comes with the levity of her humor.

She joked to "People" magazine just a couple of weeks ago, how has she lived so long? How has she had such a full life? She said it's her diet. I try to avoid anything green. She said, I think it's working.

(LAUGHTER)

[15:10:05]

STELTER: Even -- look, I can't deliver the line the way she could.

(LAUGHTER)

STELTER: But the idea that she even would give off humor in an interview with "People" magazine, she would have those one-liners, she would know how to put people at ease.

It is a crushing loss at the end of 2021, a year many people want to forget. And to lose her on the last day of the year is some sort of bookend.

NOBLES: Yes.

And, Bill, can you talk about kind of the resurgence of some of her older work, I mean, "Golden Girls" included. But there are -- my kids will be able to watch "Golden Girls," right, from start to finish because it's so easily accessible now in the streaming age.

It's very possible that her legacy will go on for many years to come because of how accessible all this media is.

CARTER: Absolutely. I mean, that's one of the things about being a great sitcom star.

Those great episodes continue to play for generation and generation. Obviously, "I Love Lucy" proves that.

But "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," I mean, her character in "The Mary Tyler" -- that's really where she emerged, because she had been on TV doing things, and she did game show work. That's how she met her husband. She was on "Password" and met her husband, Allen Ludden, as a guest on a game show.

But once she got on "Mary Tyler Moore" and hit that real nerve center of what makes a great sitcom, and her character was so breakout, she would -- she was instant comedy in that show. They would insert her in a scene and she would get laughs, period. Didn't matter who she was with.

In that way, I think people suddenly said, oh, Betty White, do I know her? Where is she from? And they knew she was around television before. But once she did that great sitcom, that can be found all over the -- you can go back and look at those "Mary Tyler Moore" episodes.

My wife was just watching one yesterday. And so -- and "Golden Girls" is absolutely a huge hit among even young people. It's just the kind of show that makes people feel good and laugh and enjoy themselves. And she was essential to those shows, really, really a heart of them.

NOBLES: Yes.

And, Brian, we also would be remiss if we didn't talk about our charity work. She was very passionate about animal rights and even joked at one point that that was her life's work and that television and entertainment was just a hobby.

STELTER: Yes, that's right.

And she credited her love of animals with the vacations that she would go on as a child with her family. I believe it was in the Santa Monica Mountains. It was somewhere in California. They would go off every year. They would spend time in the wilderness.

She said, one year, they came, they collected up dozens of animals, dozens of dogs. So that connection at an early age with animals, with wildlife made a real difference. And her agent, Jeff Witjas, mentioned that in his statement this afternoon, referring to her love of animals and how important that was to her.

In her -- in the last few years, she was not very visible in terms of new television, new episodes. Certainly, those reruns, everyone knows, but she was mostly living a quieter life at home and really focusing on those charities, really focusing on those nonprofit endeavors.

NOBLES: Well, I can guarantee the streaming numbers for "The Mary Tyler Moore Show," for "Golden Girls," for "Hot in Cleveland," all these shows are going to be through the roof for the next couple of weeks at the news of the loss of Betty White.

Brian Stelter and Bill Carter, thank you for being here and providing your insight on short notice.

STELTER: Thanks.

NOBLES: The breaking news this hour, actress Betty White has passed away at the age of 99.

We will be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:17:48]

NOBLES: And President Joe Biden took questions from reporters after a lunch in Wilmington, Delaware.

He spoke about his call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I made it clear to the -- President that he -- if he makes any more moves and going into Ukraine, we will have severe sanctions. We will increase our presence in Europe with our NATO allies, and there will be a heavy price to pay for it.

QUESTION: Did you get the sense that he's any less likely to invade Ukraine after your conversation?

BIDEN: What I got the sense of is that he's agreed that we would have three major conferences in Europe, beginning in the middle of the month, with our senior staffs, that relate to the OSCE, the Russia- NATO Council, as well as the continuation of discussions on our strategic doctrine.

And so he did not disagree with any of that. And he laid out some of his concerns about NATO and the United States and Europe. We laid out ours.

And we said we would began to negotiate some of those issues. But I made it clear that they only could work if, in fact, he de-escalated, not escalated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NOBLES: All right, let's go to CNN's Jeremy Diamond. He is with the president in Wilmington, Delaware.

And you heard our D.J. Judd press the president about what he specifically talked to Vladimir Putin about. What are your main takeaways from what the president just said?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, this is the message that senior administration officials have been telling us since that call and before that call, that it was the message that the president was going to deliver, making very clear to the Russian leader that there are two paths ahead that he can potentially go down.

One of those paths involves the diplomacy that is already being set up with those security talks beginning on January 10 between U.S. and Russian officials.

The other path is if President Putin decides to move forward with an invasion, and, in that case, the U.S. will impose a very severe cost, the president saying today that Vladimir Putin would have a heavy price to pay if indeed he moves forward.

[15:20:00]

And the president also making clear in no uncertain terms. He said that Vladimir Putin cannot, he said, emphasize cannot, move forward with an invasion of Ukraine.

So, President Biden wants it to be crystal clear, not only to the Russian leader, but also to the world, what the U.S. response will be if indeed, the Russian president decides to move forward with an invasion there.

And the president was also talking there about those upcoming negotiations happening that week of January 10. And one thing that is clear is that -- and this is something U.S. officials have also emphasized -- is that, ultimately, there cannot be progress unless Russia chooses to de-escalate.

So far, we have not seen Russia move to de-escalate in any way. They had said they were going to withdraw 10,000 troops. The U.S. hasn't had any confirmation of that. And it's not clear that they're withdrawing from those key areas.

That's why we have seen those U.S. spy planes stepping up their efforts, those flights over Eastern Ukraine, to get a better sense of Russian military movements.

And, just finally, I think it's also worth noting that the president was also asked about the passing of Betty White. We heard the president say: "That's a shame. She was a lovely lady."

And the first lady, Jill Biden, also saying: "Who didn't love Betty White? We're so sad about her death" -- Ryan.

NOBLES: OK.

All right, Jeremy Diamond live from Wilmington, Delaware, with the president.

Jeremy, thanks for that.

Let's talk more about this now with "Washington Post" White House reporter and CNN political analyst Seung Min Kim, and also the national political reporter for "The New York Times" and also a CNN political analyst, Astead Herndon.

Thank you both for being here. Seung Min, let's start with you.

I mean, obviously, I mean, you have covered Joe Biden when he was in the United States Senate, now as president. One of the things he prides himself on is his knowledge of foreign policy. So, in this particular situation, these conversations with Vladimir Putin, does it appear that he's positioned the United States well in holding off Russian aggression there in Ukraine, but, at the same time, not causing the situation to get worse?

SEUNG MIN KIM, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, he is certainly trying to pull all the levers possible, without really escalating the situation further, to try to stop this incursion from Ukraine.

You have heard both President Biden and top administration officials say they are taking steps that are stronger than what they actually considered the last time this confrontation came to a bear in 2014 to try to dissuade Vladimir Putin from potential -- from this potential invasion of Ukraine.

But now, as we have discussed, it's not clear what action the Russian president will take. He is delivering a New Year's address, I think, within the hour, so that will be interesting to watch as well. But, certainly, President Biden has touted his knowledge of foreign policy, how to deal with actors like Putin.

And so this situation with Russia and Ukraine certainly poses a test. We will be watching his conversation with Ukrainian President Zelensky later to see what comes out of that conversation as well.

NOBLES: Astead, the White House has attempted to use this threat of sanctions when it comes to Russian aggression in the past, not at any point threatening military response should Putin take that step. Is there any reason to believe that that's enough to keep Putin at bay?

ASTEAD HERNDON, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: You know, it's hard to answer.

I mean, we know that this has been historically the action that we have seen White House, even previous ones, use, that threat of sanctions, but we don't know certainly if Russia is going to respond to that. And the only person who is going to control that is President Putin.

And so we're going to see the Biden administration draw that red line, make clear to the world kind of where the United States stance is. But, as we know before, Russia's an agitator, someone who likes to intentionally cross those boundaries, a provocateur.

And the Biden administration is going to have to deal with that. This is the kind of warning shot, the diplomatic message we have seen from White Houses prior. If that line is crossed, we will have to see what comes next.

NOBLES: So, this obviously is against the backdrop of heading into a midterm election season, Astead.

How much could the issue of Russia become for both Democrats and Republicans on the campaign trail?

HERNDON: Yes, it certainly can.

I mean, we have seen foreign policy issues pop up certainly to the top of the national agenda. I can remember the pullout of Afghanistan certainly being something that made ripples and waves throughout the country. That can certainly happen if we see those things escalate.

But, historically, we know that the midterms have been something that really is in those big structural questions. Are you happy with where the direction of the country is going? Are you happy with the direction of the presidency? Do you think Democrats have done enough with their control of Congress and the White House?

We expect it to be a referendum on Joe Biden, that White House and the Democratic control of Congress. Now, that certainly can bring in foreign policy issues and Democratic handling of that, but I think this is going to be a big, big -- this is going to be election about those kinds of big questions, and those specific issues will just filter into that.

NOBLES: Yes, Astead makes a great, point, SMK, about the domestic agenda.

And right now, Joe Biden's domestic agenda seems to have hit a brick wall with Joe Manchin's resistance to the Build Back Better plan.

[15:25:01]

Does the White House have a path forward, or do they favor the idea of breaking it up into smaller pieces? or they do they still think the best way forward is to push this all through in one big reconciliation package?

KIM: I think they're hoping that brick wall that President -- or that Senator Manchin put up right before the break is going to tear down bit by bit once Congress returns in January, people have had a little time to cool off.

President Biden, Senator Manchin did have a conversation after Senator Manchin came out against the Build Back Better package as written. So I think they're -- both White House officials and senior Democrats feel there is a small pathway forward.

Now, there is discussion about breaking up the package. You have heard, for example, Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland discuss that point. But that poses a new, completely new set of challenges that I don't think the Democrats particularly want to confront, meaning that some of those pieces are going to have to get Republican support, because they're going to need 60 votes to pass the Senate.

And once you get down to the nitty-gritty of legislating on big policy pieces, like the child tax credit, paid leave, it's really hard to see how you get 50 Democrats, plus 10 Republicans to agree on any of these policy provisions. So the best bet right now still for Democrats, if they want to get

this done, is to keep working with Joe Manchin, keep working with Kyrsten Sinema. She has been a little bit quiet the last several weeks, but to keep working with those two senators and the rest of the caucus to see what they can come up with.

NOBLES: Yes. Is it 50 votes one time or 60 votes a bunch of times?

KIM: Right. Right.

NOBLES: An opening for Democrats right now, but that's a decision they're going to have to make.

Astead, the other big issue that Democrats still need to confront are voting rights, that, of course, a big issue as you head into the midterm elections. Georgia's Governor Brian Kemp just signed a new law with a new congressional map. That could flip at least one congressional seat into Republican hands, pitting two Democrats against each other, that, of course, Lucy McBath and Carolyn Bourdeaux.

They would be forced to run against each other. This is happening all across the country, as Republicans eye at least taking back power in the House. Is there any path forward right now on voting rights? Is there a way to get something over the finish line?

HERNDON: Yes, there's just a massive disconnect between the rhetoric we saw on the campaign trail, where Democrats to a person were saying that this was the top of their agenda, or going specifically to minority communities, saying that, if you elect Democrats, they will protect that voting right -- or they will pass that those pieces of legislation, H.R.1 or H.R.4 meant to bolster access to the ballot box.

We have not seen Washington have really substantial movement on this front, again, because it's running up against the same challenge that they're seeing on their larger domestic agenda, which is the filibuster. Even if Democrats do agree to create a carve-out for the filibuster for voting rights, as some have suggested, that does not have universal support, even among the Senate Democratic Caucus.

And so you're going to have to have something where not only are voting -- or that voting rights legislation have universal opposition by Republicans, but you have Democrats who haven't even gotten on the same page themselves about how to prioritize this.

It is a classic case of rhetoric vs. policy action the campaign trail. This was certainly the number one issue. Folks were going to state by state saying this was going to happen, but the realities of that 50/50 Senate are such where they're going to have to go back to those voters next year as of now and say, our best efforts weren't good enough.

NOBLES: Yes.

As difficult as we think it is to pass Build Back Better, these voting rights issues -- we didn't even talk about criminal justice reform. I think that fits in the same category. That may be even more difficult. All right, Seung Min Kim and Astead Herndon, excellent analysis, as

always. A happy new year to both of you and thank you for being here.

HERNDON: Thank you.

NOBLES: And a startling look at the destruction caused by a massive wildfire in Colorado, at least 500 homes turned to ash overnight.

The latest on the search for what started the fire -- ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:30:00]