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Attempt To Save Boy Stuck In Well Reaches "Very Advanced Stage"; 1 Killed, 4 Injured In Shooting Near Virginia Tech Campus; Divorce, Custody Cases Complicated In The Age Of COVID; Thousands Of Truckers Protest Vaccine Mandates In Canada; Shaun White Says Beijing Olympics Will Be His Last; First U.S. Troops Deployed To Eastern Europe Arrive In Poland; DOJ Releases New Violent, Profanity-Laced Videos From January 6; Call Records Show Trump And Jordan Spoke On Morning Of January 6. Aired 12-1p ET

Aired February 05, 2022 - 12:00   ET

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

[11:59:44]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR (on camera): Hi, everyone. Thanks for joining me. I'm Amara Walker, in for Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin with U.S. troops from Fort Bragg arriving in Poland. They're part of the roughly 3,000 troops President Biden is sending to support NATO allies in Eastern Europe in Russia amassing troops on the border with Ukraine.

[12:00:03]

WALKER: All in all, the U.S. has put 8,500 troops on high alert for deployment to Eastern Europe.

CNN's International diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is in Moscow, and Isabel Rosales is at Fort Bragg North Carolina.

Isabel, we'll start with you. What else do we know about the deployments happening this weekend?

ISABEL ROSALES, CNN NMATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Amara, good morning to you.

I just got off the phone with a contact here at Fort Bragg, and she made it clear that deployments are still happening. But in terms of the timing, how many troops are moving out of the base? That timeline, they are keeping that very much close to the chest, and as you can understand, for operational safety measures there.

President Biden's official order came down on Wednesday and they moved very quickly. Less than 24 hours after that, troops were already deploying from this base.

Altogether, The plan is 2,000 paratroopers and soldiers hopping on to C-17 military aircrafts and headed to Eastern Europe, specifically Germany, and Poland. And this is a significant move by the US.

The U.S. is acting on the potential of Russian President Vladimir Putin invading Ukraine. Russia has refused to draw back tens of thousands of troops stationed there along its border with Ukraine.

The Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby made it clear that these soldiers, they are not going to Europe to fight. This is a symbolic move. It is a show of force to deter Russian aggression and also to support NATO allies.

I also want you to listen now to the XVIII Airborne Corps, the spokesperson for that division, what he had to say about how quickly the soldiers had to be deployed.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW VISSER, SPOKESMAN, XVIII AIRBORNE CORPS: The soldiers of XVIII Airborne Corps in the 82nd Airborne Division are always ready as America's contingency corps in the immediate response force. They're ready to mobilize on a moment's notice to deploy in support of whatever operation it is.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROSALES: Right, and those soldiers do not know how long they will be serving there in Europe, the Pentagon has also not ruled out that they could send additional troops. Amara?

WALKER: All right. Isabel, thank you.

And Nic, to you in Moscow. So, even with the U.S. troop deployments in Eastern Europe, and, you know, Russia's positioning of its troops all around Ukraine, I mean, there is reason to be cautiously optimistic, right, especially with this big meeting coming up next week?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on camera): Yes, it offers an opportunity for President Putin to find a diplomatic way out. And United States and NATO, both in their letters said, look, we have common ground here. You want -- you have some issues on arms control, on missile deployments, on these sorts of things, concerns that you have, and we can get to those, you know, discuss them.

And this is, in essence, what President Macron of France is coming to Moscow to talk about with President Putin.

But there's also a sort of a hurdle for President Putin, and that is, you know, to get into this discussion in a meaningful way to show serious commitment. The expectation is that he needs the signal away that can be understood in western capitals, and that he is de- escalating the tensions around Ukraine. That he is reducing that threat, and not making it appear as if he's preparing for a potential invasion. Whatever he says publicly about not doing that.

So, this track of diplomacy has an opportunity. President Macron of France has said is coordinating very carefully with other European -- other European and NATO leaders, and he's spoken with Justin Trudeau of Canada, he's spoken with President Biden, he spoke today with Boris Johnson, the British prime minister, the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, President Duda of Poland just a couple of days ago. So, there's a lot of effort going into bring a message to President Putin that there is an opportunity here. But at the moment, there's no indication that President Putin is going to take that opportunity.

If he -- if he continues to keep his troops where they're positioned right now, the signaling -- the diplomatic signaling is that he is not ready for a conversation. And as he has said, so far, his core, core demands that Ukraine can't be allowed to join NATO. That just hasn't been answered.

So, this is an opportunity. But even President Macron's office says this is not going to happen very quickly if, if at all in these conversations Monday.

WALKER: Very interesting. All right. Nic Robertson in Moscow, Isabel Rosales, thank you both so much.

Let's talk more about this with Kim Dozier, she is a CNN Global Affairs analyst, a contributor to Time Magazine, and she spent many years as a foreign correspondent.

[12:05:03]

WALKER: Kim, it's always great to see you.

So, what is your assessment, especially, you know, with the positioning of Russian troops all around Ukraine? And you heard Nic Robertson posing that question. It's unclear if even with the talks that are supposed to start on Monday, is Putin ready for a conversation?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST (on camera): Well, Putin's goal all along. Since he became leader of his country, has been to restore it to the superpower status, it once enjoyed when he was a Russian intelligence agent.

So, by moving these troops, they're like chess pieces on a board that have, as Nic Robertson laid out, gotten him the attention of every major world leader, he doesn't need to invade right now, in a sense, he's made his point.

Now, he hasn't gotten the wind, and is not likely to get the winds that he'd been pushing for that NATO will agree not to expand. But what he did get was that meeting with Xi Jinping, where they're standing shoulder to shoulder, and China, which doesn't normally get involved in foreign affairs, talking about foreign affairs between other countries, came out and said, it doesn't want NATO expansion either.

And there were also talks behind closed doors about the expansion of trade between Russia and China, building this foundation for a future alignment that diminishes the power and influence of the United States, NATO, and the West, and leaves Russia ascendant just by Putin's willingness to move tens of thousands of troops around. At least, that's the outward impression that he hopes to convey. WALKER: OK. So, he can say he's got a win on that front, right? I mean, so, there is this new deep strategic partnership between China and Russia. How should the world view this? Should we see it as a threat as they are trying to challenge the U.S. led international order?

DOZIER: Well, one of the things that at least augurs a certain, you know, let's calm down about this, this isn't about to be, you know, Russia and China against the West next year.

But, what Russia is doing is by building its trade ties with China, a building on its pipeline deals that exist and working on a future one. It's trying to free itself from relying on the European market for its energy supplies.

And the more it frees itself, the more it also frees itself from the possible impact of any sanctions, the West might hand out. So, this is building a foundation for the future. It doesn't mean that Russia won't feel the sting right now, if Biden and NATO announced sweeping sanctions or NATO countries, NATO members.

But it's with an eye towards the future. It's also courting countries in Africa, countries in Latin America, saying, hey, you want to do business with Russia and China? Because we are the future. This is -- this, again, it's a big rhetorical messaging exercise.

WALKER: So, what is your take regarding what's happening on the ground right now, and, you know, what Putin's next steps might be, especially with so many troops amassed?

I mean, if you look at the map, I mean, they've surrounded Ukraine. So, the positioning seems like they're, you know, there is combat readiness going on. And also, you have the Biden administration, warning that the Russians might, you know, consider filming this fake attack, so they could use it as a pretext to invade Ukraine.

DOZIER: Yes, there is still the possibility that Putin might decide -- the Biden administration will put troops in Poland, but it's not going to put any troops in Ukraine, they won't give more lethal aid to Ukraine. Now, just couldn't be the best possible time for us to seize another slice of Ukrainian territory.

But, you know, and he's got a -- he's got a clock ticking, because in March, the ground will start to thaw and the strength of Putin's army is in its tank core, and it's tanks need hard frozen ground to travel over.

But, in terms of this false flag operation, yes, by announcing it, the U.S. has taken a page out of the potential Russian playbook. But also it's given Moscow a chance to ridicule the U.S. because the U.S. hasn't been able to declassify, or is chosen not to declassify any the intelligence by which it's drawing these conclusions.

So, it becomes a misinformation war back and forth. And it just depends on which camp you're in who you choose to believe. Unless you're reporters, and then, we're skeptical of everything. WALKER: Of course -- of course.

And, Kim, if you will, take a listen to what Ukraine's defense minister said to our Melissa Bell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLEKSIY REZNIKOV, UKRAINIAN DEFENSE MINISTER: We have the same (INAUDIBLE), but the difference perception or different estimation.

[12:10:01]

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The difference is on the question of intention. You don't believe they intend to invade.

REZNIKOV: I hope that in Kremlin they didn't make their decisions still.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: It feels like the Ukrainians obviously, have a slightly different take than -- you know, the rest of us. I mean, there seems to be slight optimism. What did you -- what did you think of his comments there?

DOZIER: Well, he is also messaging to an internal audience.

WALKER: Right.

DOZIER: He's worried about, you know, his currency collapsing, foreign investment flight, and the country panicking. So, they want to send that message of strength and solidarity and keep the panic to private channels with the U.S. and NATO.

WALKER: Kim Dozier, always a pleasure to have you. Thank you.

DOZIER: Thank you.

WALKER (voice-over): All right. Still to come, the Justice Department releases several new disturbing videos from the day of the Capitol insurrection. We will have the details.

And later, rescuers in Morocco are racing to save a five 5-old boy who has been trapped in a well for days.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:15:15]

WALKER (on camera): We now have a clearer picture of what took place on January 6th in our nation's capital, and the growing rift in the Republican Party between those condemning, and actually saying it really happened, and those who refuse to acknowledge it.

In just the last 24 hours, former Vice President Mike Pence rebuked Trump's claims that Pence actually had the power to overturn the 2020 election results.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: President Trump is wrong. I had no right to overturn the election. The presidency belongs to the American people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER (voice-over): And that same day, the Justice Department released new videos from January 6th. They are violent, they're vulgar that clearly showcased the mentality of the mob that day.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, let me find out Pence, let me find out myself, did you treason the country?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: Meanwhile, the Republican National Committee censured Congresswoman Liz Cheney and Congressman Adam Kinzinger, for "participating" in a Democrat-led persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse. That was discourse? The RNC leader had to clean that up.

Senator Mitt Romney ripped his party's decision to censure the pair, saying, in part, "Shame falls on a party that was censure persons of conscience, who seek truth in the face of vitriol."

And on top of all this, new details about when Trump loyalists Republican Congressman Jim Jordan spoke to President Trump on January 6th. Two sources telling CNN that President Trump spoke on the phone from the White House residents with Jordan for 10 minutes on the morning of January 6th, a detail that Jordan has been elusive on.

WALKER (on camera): But first, let's take a closer look at the videos from that day. And let's bring in CNN's Annie Grayer. Annie, they're just -- they make your blood boil when you watch these videos. What more can you tell us?

ANNIE GRAYER, CNN CAPITOL HILL REPORTER (on camera): These videos were newly released from the Department of Justice as part of their investigation into what happened on January 6th.

And like you said, Amara, these are very violent, disturbing videos that really paint a picture for what was going on that day. And, you know, we feel like it's important to show these videos because just yesterday, as you mentioned, the Republican National Committee put out a statement on January 6, referring to it as legitimate political discourse.

Now, the video you're about to see, which is shows an individual threatening former Vice President Mike Pence, if anything but political discourse, and this is really key because Pence was at the Capitol on January 6th, overseeing the election certification process. Take a look at this video.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN NICHOLS, JANUARY 6 DEFENDANT: I'm telling you, what, I'm hearing that Pence, I heard that Pence just caved?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No.

NICHOLS: Is that true?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I didn't hear it.

NICHOLS: I'm hear -- I'm hearing reports that Pence caved.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No way.

NICHOLS: I'm telling you, what, if Pence cave, we're going to drag motherfuckers through the streets. You fucking politicians are going to get fucking drag through the streets.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

NICHOLS: Because we're not going to have our fucking shit stolen. We're not going to have our election our country stolen. If we find out you politicians voted for, we're going to drag your fucking ass to the street.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

NICHOLS: Because this is the second fucking revolution. So, let me find out Pence. Let me find out myself. Did you treason the country? We'll fucking drag your ass too.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Cut that fucking head off.

NICHOLS: Cut their head off.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You can do it

NICHOLS: You do the right thing, and we're going to force you to do the right thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRAYER: As you can see with that really shocking, disturbing video, the former vice president who was at the capitol that day, really, you know, could have been at risk for some serious danger, Amara.

WALKER: Yes, and Annie, we were mentioning this 10-minute call that Jim Jordan, the congressman had with Trump on the morning of the riot. You spoke with him. Is he being wishy-washy about it again? GRAYER: So, before we get into what Congressman Jordan said to me yesterday, I want to give some key context here. We reported yesterday that the January 6th committee has in its possession White House records that show former President Donald Trump wanted to speak with Jim Jordan and that the pair spoke on the morning of January 6th, while Trump was still in the residence of the White House.

This is a key detail because Jim Jordan was a key ally for the former president in his efforts to stop the election certification process.

[12:20:01]

GRAYER: The fact that this call happened in the morning means that the two were speaking before Congress actually met to go through the election certification process.

Now, Jim Jordan himself has said that he spoke with Donald Trump on that day. But he has repeatedly been unclear about, you know, the length of those calls, when those calls happen.

And I caught up with him in the halls of Congress yesterday to try and really clarify when the two spoke. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH): As I said, I had a number of calls with -- I talked to the president a couple of times that day, but I don't remember the times.

(CROSSTALK)

GRAYER (voice-over): So --

JORDAN: So, I don't remember. I don't remember.

REP. JIM JORDAN (R-OH): You do not -- you don't remember if it was the morning? if there was one in the morning, before --

JORDAN: I don't recall. But, I know I talked to him after we left off the floor, but I don't recall.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRAYER (on camera): So, as you heard there, Congressman Jordan, you know, really not being clear about the details of the call that -- the calls that he had with Trump that day.

And this is why the January 6th committee wants to speak with Congressman Jordan. They reached out to him voluntarily, and Jim Jordan has denied that request.

They're currently weighing whether or not they want to take the unprecedented step of subpoena in Jordan to get that information about what Trump and Jordan talked about on some of those calls.

But, you know, the key big picture here is the call that we reported on yesterday is a new detail to fit into the timeline that the January 6th committee is building of the events leading up to, and specifically, you know, on the day of January 6th.

WALKER: Yes, the timeline is so key. Annie Grayer, thank you for breaking that down for us.

Now, despite being at the center of the threats on January 6th, a former Vice President Mike Pence has not rebuked Trump this directly, about overturning the 2020 election until now. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PENCE: And I heard this week, the President Trump said I had the right to overturn the election. President Trump is wrong. I had no right to overturn the election. The presidency belongs to the American people and the American people alone. And frankly, there is no idea more un- American than the notion that anyone person could choose the American president.

Under the Constitution, I had no right to change the outcome of our election. And Kamala Harris will have no right to overturn the election when we beat them in 2024.

Look, I understand the disappointment, many feel about the last election. I was on the ballot. But whatever the future holds, I know we did our duty that day.

If we lose faith in the Constitution, we won't just lose elections. We'll lose our country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WALKER: All right, let's discuss all of this further. Joining us now, CNN political commentator Ana Navarro. Ana, always great to have you. Great to see you.

I want to first get your reaction to Pence's, I guess, most direct or strongest rejection yet of Trump. And look, I'm sure you're the last person who's going to say, wow, he's being so politically courageous.

So, why do you think it took him, what? 13 months to say this directly? Trump is wrong, this was un-American. This could be un- American if one person can overturn an election.

ANA NAVARRO, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Because I think he was weighing his options. And I think he was weighing his own personal future. And he was seeing how the dust settled.

And look, I -- It's hard not to accept the truth when we are learning all the information through the January 6 committee. And as the timeline for that day gets pieced together, and the different pieces that are making up the puzzle, right?

The more you see of the puzzle complete, the more you realize that it was a conspiracy by Trump and his minions to try to overturn the election, involving fake ballots, fake electors, overturning the elections of Mike Pence.

And so, you know, I think of Mike Pence probably just came to the realization that Donald Trump is never ever, ever going to admit he lost. Donald Trump is also never ever, ever going to forgive Mike Pence for not going on into -- you know, not going along with the conspiracy and his criminal plan.

And so, what option does Mike Pence have at this point, other than to try to recover a modicum of dignity and sanity after four years of being an accomplice and shoe polisher to Donald Trump, and allowing the abuses of power, and just nodding his head and looking lovingly.

[12:25:01]

WALKER: OK, but how does he even have a political future then in the Republican party when you have the Republican Party officially censuring the likes of Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for this investigation, trying to seek the truth, and they called the events leading up to it and the day of political legitimate -- political discourse?

NAVARRO: It's even hard to hear it referred to that when we've seen the scenes. And when we've seen the scenes of policemen and Capitol Police getting hurt and harmed, some of them paying even with their lives and they're -- and they're -- you know, being harmed bodily.

Look, he doesn't have a political future in the -- in the Republican Party of today. He's got zero political future. And that's precisely my point. Because he has no political future, because without Donald Trump's anointment right now, and approval, you have no political future in the Republican Party, unless you're somebody like Liz Cheney, willing to take him on the way she has.

So, if he has no political future, let him at least do the right thing for his own future, for his own legacy, for history. But I would say this, if Mike Pence feels he has a constitutional duty if Mike Pence feels that this is the right thing to do, what he needs to do is sit down and go talk to the January 6 committee.

It's taken him 13 months to admit the undeniable that this was his constitutional duty. I will tell you that his American duty and his patriotic duty as an American citizen, who cares for democracy if that's what he's trying to do, is try to bring out the whole truth, and cooperate with this investigation. And lend it some more credence of a being bipartisan or nonpartisan.

WALKER: How do you wrap your mind as an American around the fact that you have the Republican Party's stance on what happened that day with this censure?

What does this say about -- I mean, this is the Republican Party. What does this say about our country when the party is not just downplaying what happened? I mean, like I was saying last hour, it's like rewriting history or denying the facts?

NAVARRO: I can't wrap my arms around it, right? I have not been able to wrap my arms around there from day one. I -- you know, I don't understand how so many Republicans who used to be about law and order, who used to be about the Constitution, who used to be about defending democracy, somehow have only become cowards and lemmings who worship at the altar of Donald Trump.

And I'm very thankful for the voices of Liz Cheney, for the voices of Adam Kinzinger, for the voices of Mitt Romney, for the voices that have come out in the last several weeks, denouncing what Republican leadership, what Donald Trump, and now, what the RNC is doing.

I mean, can you imagine, Liz freaking Cheney, the daughter of Dick Cheney.

WALKER: Right.

NAVARRO: You know, is a rhino and not Republican enough and being censured and wanting to push her out? Liz Cheney? I mean, it makes absolutely no sense. And they're doing it for what? For a criminal mastermind, who has no political or institutional ideological grounding in the Republican Party, who used and turn that base for his own benefit, and his own political, and personal gain.

WALKER: It's not just a few far-right extremists anymore, that ideology, clearly, has become a part --

(CROSSTALK)

NAVARRO: No, it's a bunch of power to -- are afraid of losing their position. Who are -- who have put their political future --

(CROSSTALK)

WALKER: Yes.

NAVARRO: Much above the country.

WALKER: A pleasure to talk to you, Ana Navarro. Thank you.

NAVARRO: Thank you.

WALKER: All right, still to come. Efforts continue to reach a 5-year- old boy who's been trapped in a well for four days. This is happening in Morocco. We're going to bring you the latest on the rescue after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:33:25]

WALKER: And we continue to follow breaking news of a five-year-old boy who has been trapped in a well in Morocco for four days now since Tuesday. He may finally be on the verge of being rescued. Thank goodness.

For more now, let's bring in the Al Goodman. What can you tell us about the latest on this rescue? Are they close? AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Amara. We have heard intermittent bouts of applause from the rescue site in recent hours but that has not yet materialized into a rescue. Although rescuers say that they are at a very advanced stage towards rescuing five-year-old Rayan, Rayan is his name, who went missing on Tuesday. His mother told authorities he was playing outdoors.

This is a rugged area of northern Morocco in the roof mounts. He was playing outdoors. He disappeared briefly and then she realized he was down in this well. Since then, rescuers have brought in bulldozers and other specialized equipment, specialized teams where the reports say that they have dug a parallel hole down to the well and a parallel hole and now they're trying to go across to try to get him and they're tantalizingly close.

But as you know that many things can go wrong. They've already encountered landslides, some boulders here in the last several days as they've been trying to rescue the boy. And things can still go wrong. But there are a lot of hopes, there are a lot of people watching as well as those who are trying to get him out. So there is a degree of hope here as we're waiting to see how this ends. Amara?

WALKER: We hope it ends very well with us seeing this boy doing physically and emotionally. OK, Al Goodman, thank you for keeping us posted.

Still ahead, police are investigating a deadly shooting near Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia where one person was killed, four others were injured. The latest next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:39:43]

WALKER: New today, police are investigating a deadly shooting near the main campus of Virginia Tech. One person was killed, four others injured when the shooting happened just before midnight at a hookah lounge. And that prompted a campus lockdown in the early hours of this morning.

[12:40:00]

CNN's Polo Sandoval monitoring the situation. And Polo, obviously, an incident like this bringing up really painful memories of what happened 15 years ago.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That certainly does especially because the lounge where the shooting happened is less than half a mile from the memorial that pays tribute to those people who died in 2007. Those 32 lives that were cut short. But it's important to point out when it comes to the last night shooting, police have not been able to establish any particular motive. But nonetheless, it's still remains tragic.

Here you see police were called to a hookah lounge to reports of gunfire just before midnight and that's when police say they found five people were injured, one of them fatally. Now, campus officials at the nearby Virginia Tech releasing a statement saying that they basically issued a shelter in place order as a precaution and that was lifted just a few hours later. And they also confirm that one of the victims of the shooting was, in fact, one of their -- or at least is one of their students.

But again, we don't know a whole lot about what led up to these shots that were fired here. And again, that lockdown or at least that shelter in place order was lifted very quickly. So now a lot that's been made available right now when it comes to victims. That's to be expected as this is still a very fluid investigation from last night.

But we are surprised right now the police have not released a whole lot of information regarding a possible motive or a suspect. So that's certainly going to be key we're currently reaching out to Blacksburg police there in Virginia, Amara, as we try to find out a little bit more about what happened that left five people injured. One of them fatally regarding that -- in that overnight shooting near Virginia Tech.

WALKER: All right, thanks for staying on top of it. Polo Sandoval, thank you.

After the break, how COVID is making divorce cases much more difficult complex. We'll talk about that next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[12:45:13]

WALKER: So making parenting decisions during COVID is hard enough, right? But for couples who are divorced or are in the process of divorcing, navigating these decisions can be contentious if their views on COVID safety are different. Even parents who may have found common ground on issues like masks, schooling and travel, are now butting heads over whether to vaccinate their kids.

Joining me now is Cary Mogerman, President of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. You know, these are questions that I didn't even consider. And now I'm going, oh, my goodness, how are people dealing? So first off, Carrie, thank you for being with me. I mean, from what you're seeing, how prevalent is this issue in custody cases?

CARY MOGERMAN, PRESIDENT, AMERICAN ACADEMY OF MATRIMONIAL LAWYERS: Thank you, Amara, for the invitation. We're seeing a lot of it now. The academy typically will poll its members from time to time about trends. We'd like to know what our colleagues are experiencing in other jurisdictions. And we did one recently, and we learned that with this pandemic, many of our colleagues, at least 40 percent of them have seen an increase in child custody disputes.

But 70 percent of those responses relate directly to differing approaches to the pandemic and to masking and to vaccination. And vaccination is really where the action is right now. That's where the primary disputes are occurring. And that's where we're seeing the cases. WALKER: OK. So let's say I'm divorced, and I -- can I just go -- if we have 50-50 custody, could I just go and vaccinate my children without telling the former spouse like, how do you navigate that?

MOGERMAN: That's a fair question. And most people who share custody, shared decision making. So it's very important if you are divorced, and you have a divorce judgment, you're going to have a parenting plan or some sort of an order within your divorce judgment that says, what topics you must not make unilateral decisions on. And it requires the parents to cooperate in reaching agreements.

If you choose to unilaterally make an important healthcare decision without your spouse's consent, your spouse may want to return you to court. The interesting thing about it, though, is some of the cases that we're seeing anecdotally around the country. Those, you know -- and I'm not endorsing unilateral violation of any judgment, but people are taking their children, their spouses back to court when a spouse makes a unilateral decision like that, that's objected to by the other spouse.

And a couple of these vaccination cases around the country, the court is not penalizing the parent who made the unilateral decision, which is very unusual. And I think it reflects the magnitude of the public health emergency that the courts believe that there is.

WALKER: That's interesting. What about, you know, the CDC guidance because it has continued to evolve, let's say, and change. Has that been complicating things, especially these written agreements between parents?

MOGERMAN: Well, it can. And you'll remember at the beginning of this pandemic, we really didn't even understand how the virus was transmitted. And people were shedding their clothes in the garage when they got home. And --

WALKER: Right.

MOGERMAN: -- pretty soon we learned that it's transmitted primarily through the air. And so that's really focused the attention of how we have been responding to it. There was a recent case out of New York, where the parties had already agreed to vaccinate their two older children who were in their team. They had an agreement to do that.

But when the guidance changed, and when the provisional approval of the vaccine changed down to a lower age, they had a dispute over whether to vaccinate the 11-year-old. And it was a very well-reasoned opinion and it was an excellent survey of the cases that we have around the country right now addressing these opinions.

[12:50:20]

And in this case, the court said that the best interests of the child under the circumstances outweighed the other parents wish and justifiable reluctance based upon the other parent's research to have the vaccination in order that the vaccination occur. WALKER: Wow. Fascinating. My last question to you, you know, one parent, let's say is vaccinated and the other isn't. Could a judge deny visitation to the unvaccinated parent, right? Because if you're a parent and you're concerned, look, I don't want -- my kid is vaccinated or maybe not vaccinated, I don't want you to be around other unvaccinated people. What happens then?

MOGERMAN: We see -- that's exactly right. And we see litigation about that too. The unvaccinated status of the other parent is sometimes the topic of a dispute in these cases as well. And we've seen courts in various states around the United States order that the unvaccinated parent either get vaccinated or participate in a regular testing regimen so that it can be assured that when the child is with that parent, there is minimal risk of contracting the virus.

WALKER: Wow. COVID has really complicated a lot of aspects of our lives. Cary Mogerman, thank you. I appreciate the conversation.

MOGERMAN: I appreciate the invitation. Thank you, Amara.

WALKER: Thanks.

All right, coming up, anti-vaccine mandate truckers are protesting for a second straight weekend in Ottawa. Why some residents say they feel trapped in their own neighborhoods?

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[12:56:32]

WALKER: It is a second straight weekend of trucker protests in Ottawa. They're protesting over new Canadian COVID-19 vaccine mandates. Police are increasing personnel over reports that some demonstrators have threatened locals and officials. CNN's Paula Newton has more.

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PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The sound is deafening and yet protesters are demanding to be heard. All day long, and at all hours of the night, those with the so-called Freedom Convoy say they're staying put until vaccine mandates are dropped, the masks come off and life returns to the way it was.

JAMES MACDONALD, PROTESTER: This -- the whole event has gone beyond just vaccines and it is now about the entire ordeal.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're asking for our freedom. That's all we want.

NEWTON (voice-over): So they've been free. Free to park big rigs right next to the Prime Minister's Office, free to set up camp in front of the country's national parliament.

(on-camera): As angry and frustrated as these protesters are residents say they feel like hostages and they want police to do more.

JACK KRENTZ, RESIDENT: I understand the police force does not want to directly intervene for fear of violence but it feels like we've been left alone a little bit.

NEWTON (voice-over): So desperate was this woman, she appealed directly to the protesters.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The downtown residents, children, elderly are suffering.

NEWTON (voice-over): They heard her but they're not listening.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This seems --

UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKERS (in unison): (INAUDIBLE).

NEWTON (voice-over): It seems to anyone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is nothing but like disruptive. Like they're using -- they're claiming their freedom while I can't even like hear anything like -- I can't even hear myself.

NEWTON (voice-over): Ottawa police say they have learned much in the past week, especially after reports of assaults, intimidation, and allegations of hate speech and symbols.

CHIEF PETER SLOLY, OTTAWA POLICE SERVICE: Our goal is to end the demonstration.

NEWTON (voice-over): To try and do that, they have called in more reinforcements moving to what they call a surge and contain strategy. But the police chief warns --

SLOLY: This remains as it was from the beginning, an increasingly volatile and increasingly dangerous demonstration.

NEWTON (voice-over): And it is spreading like a contagion itself right across the country. A handful of protests now including a border blockade between Alberta and Montana. And now Canada's largest city, Toronto, closing a large section in front of the provincial legislature this weekend as truckers descends. And more worrying, closing off the adjacent hospital row, where exhausted health care workers carry on battling COVID.

CHIEF JAMES RAMER, TORONTO POLICE SERVICE: Anyone who attempts to disrupt hospital access and routes of emergency operations, including ambulance, fire or police will be subject to strict enforcement.

NEWTON (voice-over): And yet both police and political leaders are warning this now resembles an occupation. With no quick or easy end.

Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Wow, what a story.

Well, three-time Olympic gold medalist Shaun White says these will be his last winter games. That 35-year-old snowboarder says numerous injuries influenced his decision to step back. White, who once had a nickname "The Flying Tomato" because of his bright, red hair, has won three halfpipe gold medals since his debut at the Turin games back in 2006. Why describe the moment he made the decision as sad and surreal, but also joyous?