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Former Vice President Mike Pence Publicly Rebukes Former President Trump's Claim that Pence Could have Overturned the 2020 Presidential Election; New Video Released of January 6th Capitol Insurrection; Video Compilation Features Joe Rogan Using N-Word Multiple Times on Podcast Episodes; Reporting Indicates Congressman Jim Jordan Spoke with Former President Trump for 10 Minutes During January 6th Insurrection; Over COVID-19 Vaccine Mandates; Jeff Bezos Requests Dutch Dismantle Historic Bridge So His Super Yacht Can Pass Through. Aired 2-3p ET.

Aired February 05, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: Highway patrol was able to safely airlift the couple and their small dog from the remote cabin about two hours north of Sacramento. Two months, I'm glad they are doing OK.

Thanks for joining me. I'm Amara Walker in for Fredricka Whitfield. CNN Newsroom continues with Jim Acosta right now.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN breaking news.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN ANCHOR: You are live in the CNN Newsroom. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington, and we're following breaking news, reports of a heavy police presence at an apartment complex in Brown Deer, Wisconsin, just north of Milwaukee. You can see from this video and officer running with a child in his arms. In other video, you can see officers running with guns in their hands. There had been reports of a shooting in the area, but police have not released any information at this point. Again, lots of police activity at an apartment complex north of Milwaukee. We will keep you updated on all of this as we get more information coming in throughout the afternoon.

And now to former Vice President Mike Pence, who has done something he never did while in office. Pence finally rebuked his ex-boss by name, in response to Former President Donald Trump repeatedly telling the lie that a vice president could overturn an election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE PENCE, (R) FORMER U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: I heard this week that President Trump said that 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 any one person could choose the American president. Under the Constitution, I had no right to change the outcome of our election.

(END VIDEO CLIP) ACOSTA: When you consider the messenger, those are fighting words. Pence in front of an audience of conservatives when as far as implying that Trump's ideas are un-American. Trump tried to have the last, releasing an incoherent statement, saying in part, "I was right and everyone knows it. If there is fraud or largescale irregularities, it would have been to appropriate to send those votes back to the legislatures to figure it out." That, of course, is the exact sort of lie that inspired violent threats against Pence on January 6th. The Justice Department yesterday released new videos that underscore the fact that Pence and other officials were targets. This one shows a former Marine leading a crusade toward the Capitol Hill. And we want to warn you, just coming up here, this video, the language in it is very disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN NICHOLS, SUSPECTED CAPITOL RIOTER: I'm hearing that Pence just caved? Is that true? I'm hearing reports that Pence caved. I'm telling you, if Pence caved, we're going to drag motherfuckers through the streets. You fucking politicians are going to get fucking drug through the streets, because we're not going to have our fucking shit stolen. We're not going to have our election and our country stolen. If we find out you politicians voted for it, we're going to drag your fucking ass through the street.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And most people with a pulse would call that kind of stuff frightening, but the Republican National Committee calls it, quote, "legitimate political discourse." That was the actual language used to describe the insurrection in this resolution censuring Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger for serving on the House January 6th Committee. And now the RNC is trying to say they didn't mean the people who were violent.

Joining me, a former Republican congressman and host of the "White Flag Podcast," Joe Walsh, and Molly Jong-Fast, editor-at-large for "The Daily Beast." Joe, Pence is finally speaking the truth 13 months after the fact. I guess better late than never, but how important was that, do you think, to hear those words from Mike Pence?

FORMER REP. JOE WALSH (R-IL): Not better late than never, Jim. Look, here's the deal, Pence is right and Trump is wrong. But here is the bigger deal. Mike Pence has absolutely no shot at the Republican nomination in 2024, and if Donald Trump wants the nomination in 24, it's his, because the sad truth, Jim, is this thing is over. There is no, there is no fight for the soul of the Republican Party. It's Trump's party, and it's the party of Trumpism. And you mentioned the censuring of Kinzinger and Cheney. Who spoke up to defend Kinzinger and Cheney? Where was Mike Pence, where was Ted Cruz, where was Ron DeSantis, where was any Republican that wants to run for president? This party can't be saved.

ACOSTA: Yes, Molly, Mike Pence, he just told the truth. That is what he did yesterday. Instead of kowtowing to Trump, he finally just stated a fact, that the vice president can't do this. But Trump has gone after Pence at every turn for failing to object to the election. Let's listen to a bit of that.

[14:05:02]

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: Mike Pence, I will tell you right now, I'm not hearing good stories.

I only wish that my friend Mike Pence had that additional courage to send --

(BOOS)

TRUMP: -- to send the results back to the legislature.

It was very sad when Mike Pence gave those votes over.

I think Mike has been badly hurt by what took place with respect to January 6th. I think he has been mortally wounded, frankly, because I see the reaction he is getting from people. They say, why didn't he just hand it back to the legislatures? Why didn't he do it?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Molly, Pence clearly wants to be president one day, but it took him 13 months to state the obvious.

MOLLY JONG-FAST, EDITOR-AT-LARGE, "THE DAILY BEAST": Yes, Pence is like a lot of Republicans who know better, a lot of Republicans who know better, but refuse to disavow Trump because, it used to be they were afraid of his Twitter, now there is no Twitter. Now they just are afraid of primary challenges. At every point Republicans have had a chance to say Trumpism, to disavow Trumpism and go for democracy, and say democracy must be protected. This person is anti-democratic.

And at every point they have either said nothing, or tacitly kind of encouraged him. And so we get to the point now where so much of the Republican Party has doubled down on this anti-democratic, anti-voter, pro-voter suppression, anti-count the votes kind of thing that we are in an impossible situation. You can't have one party that doesn't believe in the central tenet of American democracy.

And so I think it's good that Mike Pence said this, and certainly he sees which way the wind is blowing, so there might be something to that. But it is way, way, way too late. And he at this point, it's not even clear to me, you need the big guns, you need everyone out there saying that, or else I think it is too little, too late.

ACOSTA: Yes, and the wind does not seem to be blowing in the direction of democracy inside of the Republican Party, Joe. Let's play how Trump's former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, reacted to Pence's speech.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE BANNON, FORMER ADVISER TO PRESIDENT TRUMP: You're going to carry this thing eventually to your grave, OK, because it is a mark of shame, and you a stone-cold coward, a stone-cold coward. Boris Epshteyn, we're going to start with numbers and analysis, and then thing broke this afternoon, my head has blown up, so Boris, you have got to help me out here, brother. I can't take Pence. And I can't take Pence and Marc Short and all these Koch guys up there ratting out Trump up on Capitol Hill right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Yes, Joe, Bannon is saying that Pence is going to carry this thing to his grave. Those are code words. That is essentially a threat, it is not?

WALSH: It is a direct threat, Jim, but here's what everybody listening to you and I need to understand right now. Steve Bannon speaks right there for the Republican Party base. The majority of hardcore Republican voters, they are with Bannon, they're not with Pence. I wish -- and you do a great job of trying to wake up the country up, but this election year, Jim, man, we need to wake everybody up to this realization, this party is more Bannon than Pence, and they are on track right now to take control again in 2022 if the rest of America doesn't wake up, get off their ass, and get out and vote.

ACOSTA: Yes, Steve Bannon is the vice president of the Republican Party, right now. Donald Trump is the president of the Republican Party, and Steve Bannon is the vice president, essentially that's the situation.

Molly, all this happened on the same day the Republican National Committee voted to censure Liz Cheney and Adam Kinzinger, using the stunning language in the resolution that Representatives Cheney and Kinzinger participated in a Democrat led persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse, to which Cheney responded with a video of the rioters, saying "This was January 6th. This is not legitimate political discourse." And the RNC is trying to clean it up, saying they didn't mean people who were involved in violence, but they didn't get it right the first time, and it just sounds like cleanup on aisle six. It just is pathetic.

JONG-FAST: Yes, they really made the wrong choice. But continuously for the last 13 months, at very point the Republican Party has made the wrong choice. They've protected Donald Trump, and they've refused to disavow political violence, which is an easy one. And it has been really hard to watch, and you can see ultimately that the base has moved further to the right and further against democracy, too.

[14:10:05]

And it's just really a sort of unbelievable thing to watch. And 13 months ago, if these people had said no, political violence is wrong, and democracy is right, this is what we need to focus on, we'd be in a very different position today.

ACOSTA: No question about it. And Joe, Kevin McCarthy refused to answer questions about the RNC censure despite repeated attempts from our Manu Raju and other reporters up on Capitol Hill. What is going on with Kevin McCarthy? You served with Kevin McCarthy. It's like with Trump, there just seems to be no bottom.

WALSH: Jim, I did serve with McCarthy. He is a hollow man. He has no core. All he gives a damn about right now is he wants to be Speaker of the House. He doesn't care about the country. He doesn't care about the state of his party. He wants to be speaker. Again, Republican silence. Kinzinger and Cheney are censured for pursuing the truth about an insurrection, and all of these Republican officials don't say a damn thing. This is where the party is right now.

ACOSTA: Molly, final thought from you. My thought yesterday is the RNC should be censuring people like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Adam Kinzinger, not Liz Cheney -- sorry, should be censuring people like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Madison Cawthorn, not Adam Kinzinger and Liz Cheney. It just doesn't make any sense.

JONG-FAST: Yes. I think that they want the small-donor donations and they don't care about democracy. So ultimately people like Marjorie Taylor Greene are celebrated, and people like Adam Kinzinger are censured. And just the larger term effects of this are going to be terrible for democracy.

ACOSTA: All right, Molly Jong-Fast -- yes, final thoughts?

WALSH: But Jim, it does make sense, because this is where their voters are.

ACOSTA: It's where their voters are, and people like Marjorie Taylor Greene are commanding a lot of fundraisers these days, and the other members in the party are taking note of that. Molly, Joe, thanks so much, we appreciate it.

WALSH: Thanks, Jim.

ACOSTA: Coming up, a disturbing video showing Joe Rogan using the n- word more than 20 times over the years. How the popular podcaster is now responding to the controversy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:16:34]

ACOSTA: Joe Rogan is now apologizing after videos resurfaced of him using the n-word multiple times on his podcast. "Patriot Takes," which put the video together, is an organization that aims to expose extremism on the far right. The video is an edited compilation of different podcast episodes, and we have to warn you, this is very disturbing to hear.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROGAN, HOST, "THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE": Saying the word --

It's just like saying --

She is calling you a --

Boy, that he's an --

Starts calling him a --

And there should be a word like --

And especially like the word --

That's our --

He says -- and -- and then everyone starts saying --

You're allowed to use the word --

The word --

And he couldn't say --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Just unbelievable. Let's bring in CNN's chief media correspondent Brian Stelter. Brian, what is Joe Rogan now saying?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: He is now apologizing. And we're going to find out if that's enough for Spotify, the company that has an exclusive distribution deal with him.

Jim, this is all coming to light because of the recent controversy about anti-vaccine rhetoric on Rogan's podcast. Some artists decided to quit the service. One of them, India Arie, pointed out this video, this compilation video, and pointed out that the language Rogan has used around race in the past is just as or maybe even more problematic than his rhetoric about vaccines. We know Rogan's show is known for its fresh and frank and unvarnished conversations. That's why his fans like the show. But this compilation, this use of the n-word so many times in the past maybe too much, even for some of his defenders to bear. But here is in Rogan's own words part of his apology today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROGAN, HOST, "THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE": I am making this video to talk about the most regretful and shameful thing that I have ever had to talk about publicly. There is a video that is a compilation of me saying the n-word. It's a video that's made of clips taken out of context of me of 12 years of conversations on my podcast, it's all smushed together, and it's looks -- horrible, even to me.

I know that to most people, there is no context where a white person is ever allowed to say that word, never mind publicly on a podcast. And I agree with that now. I haven't said it in years. But for a long time, when I would bring that word up, like if it would come up in conversation, instead of saying the n-word, I would just say the word. I never used it to be racist because I am not racist. But whenever you are in a situation where you have to say I'm not racist, you -- up, and I have clearly have -- up.

(END VIDEO CLIP) STELTER: Yes, he clearly has, Jim.

ACOSTA: Yes, and he clearly has. And you and I both know that compilation right there, which he has admitted to, is authentic, that would be enough to put anybody out of a job. To me, it seems untenable to have that kind of video surface, that kind of compilation surface, and keep one's job.

But Brian, there is another video "Patriot Takes" put out which I also want to play.

[14:20:00]

It's a story Joe Rogan is telling of when he went to see what he describes as the planet of the apes. It's awful, but just show it, and then talk about it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROGAN, HOST, "THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE": And it says, OK, take me to this one. And the guy goes, OK. I go, is that in a good neighborhood? He's like, oh, yes, yes, yes. The guy barely speaks English. He takes us there, we get out, and we're giggling, we're going to see "Planet of the Apes." We walk into planet of the apes. We walked into Africa, dude. We walked in the door, and there was no white people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And Rogan addressed this in his video as well. What did he have to say about that?

STELTER: Yes, that's right. These are multiple examples of offensive content on his podcast that he is trying to apologize for at the same time. Here is what he said about this part.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROGAN, HOST, "THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE": I did not, nor would I ever say that black people are apes, but it sure -- sounded like that. And I immediately afterwards said, that's a racist thing to say, "Planet of the Apes" wasn't even in Africa. I was just saying that there was a lot of black people there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And a lot of this is about money.

STELTER: So he is, again, trying to diffuse this.

ACOSTA: Go ahead, I'm sorry.

STELTER: Trying to diffuse this, Jim, and whether it's going to work is anybody's guess. We've been reaching out to Spotify asking for comment. Spotify promotes itself as just a platform where anybody can put up their podcast. But with Rogan, they're paying Rogan tens of millions of dollars, reportedly $100 million for exclusive rights to his content, including these old episodes full of him using the n- word.

Listeners have noticed that several dozen episodes have been taken down. Apparently, those are the episodes that we have heard clips from today, so Spotify might be on a cleanup mission trying to erase some of Rogan's past. But will the company continue to stand by him? That's an open question. We have not heard back from Spotify.

ACOSTA: Right. Joe Rogan can continue to host his podcast, if people want to listen to it, they can. But it doesn't have to be on Spotify. Some of these companies that put these types of programs on their platforms, they don't have to put them there, right, Brian? Are they contractually obligated to do that?

STELTER: Companies like Spotify, Facebook, Twitter, they prevent themselves as platforms, neutral platforms. But actually Spotify in this case is a media company getting in business to distribute Rogan. They don't have to be in that business. They have chosen it because they want to grow their podcast business. That's a choice they might support and stick with. In fact the other day the head of the company said, if we are going to be in the podcast business, we are going to host content that is going to make people upset, that people aren't going to like. So maybe the company is going to stay with that position. But this is what it means to actually be a media company and not just some Silicon Valley company the way Spotify used to claim that it is.

ACOSTA: But Brian, to the earlier question that you and I were discussing a few moment ago, typically in the past when a video like the one at the beginning of this segment that we aired of Joe Rogan saying the n-word repeatedly over and over and over again over the course of many of his episodes, that would be enough for somebody to lose their job. Why might the situation be different this time, do you think?

STELTER: It might be different, because these are episodes that existed before Spotify bought into the Joe Rogan business, so before he was part of this exclusive deal to distribute. He was out more out on his own as a independent broadcaster. They might try to claim, oh, this was all in the past. But you are right, Jim, there are many examples including in Hollywood and entertainment where people have lost their roles for less than this. And that maybe why Spotify is being so quiet.

At the same time, I want to recognize, there are reasons why Rogan has lots of fans, millions of fans. People want to hear his candid conversation. But there is a difference between that, between candid, in depth conversations, and the kind of vile that is in this compilation, Jim.

ACOSTA: Right. And it's not just like it happened one time. It has happened repeatedly over the years, and it seems to me he is going to have to do more than put out an apology, a profanity-laced apology video, to put this matter to rest. Brian Stelter, thanks very much for your time. We appreciate it. STELTER: Thanks.

ACOSTA: And be sure to tune into Brian's show RELIABLE SOURCES tomorrow morning at 11:00 a.m.

Coming up, exclusive CNN reporting that seems to establish what one Congressman has been notoriously reluctant to pin down, exactly when did Jim Jordan speak with former President Trump on January 6th?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:24:14]

ACOSTA: And we have exclusive new reporting on what the House January 6th committee knows about Congressman Jim Jordan and his conversations with former President Trump on the date of the attack. Sources tell CNN the two spoke by phone for 10 minutes that morning hours before the riot, and before Jordan object to the certification of the election results. But Jordan seems to have a hard time remembering the details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM JORDAN, (R-OH): As I said, I had no more calls with -- I talked to the president a couple times a day, but I don't remember the times. So I don't remember.

ANNIE GRAYER, CNN REPORTER: 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 remember the call.

GRAYER: So you don't remember if there was one before the violence started?

[14:30:05]

JORDAN: I don't.

GRAYER: And that it was 10 minutes?

JORDAN: I don't.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And this seems to be a pattern for Jim Jordan. Here's what he had to say last year.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. JIM JORDAN, (R-OH) HOUSE OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE RANKING MEMBER: When I spoke to him on January 6th, I talk with President Trump all of the time.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On January 6th, did you speak with him before, during, or after the Capitol was attacked?

JORDAN I would have to go -- I spoke with him that day after, I think after. I don't know if I spoke with him in the morning or not. I just don't know. I would have to go back. I don't know that, when those conversations happened.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And joining me now is CNN senior legal analyst Elie Honig. Elie, Jordan has refused to voluntarily appear before an interview with the select committee. I'm just kind of curious, as a career prosecutor, somebody who has been in these situations questioning folks who may be the target on an investigation or witness who is not cooperating with an investigation, how does he strike you when he hear him stumble over those kinds of answers?

ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Fairly low on the credibility scale, Jim. I think that was obvious. We've seen that clip before, and it is ridiculous. He's obviously afraid or something. Now I think we know why. I think we know what he's so afraid of. A 10-minute phone call as we're not reporting, that is a big deal. That is a long time to be on the phone with somebody. And to me, it's completely implausible that a congressman would have no memory of a conversation he had with a sitting president for 10 minutes, that's a long conversation with a very important person on a historic day. So Jim Jordan's responses that we just played would, if anything, peak my interests as a prosecutor, as an investigator.

ACOSTA: And as a journalist, I would have to say the same.

Elie, as recently as this week, Trump has been dangling pardons for those who participated in the riot if he returns to the White House. Let's listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: These people are being treated horribly. I would absolutely, because some of them are being treated very unfairly. Yes, I would absolutely give them a pardon if things don't work out fairly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: This is one I have been wanting to ask you for days now. This feels like witness tampering.

HONIG: Yes, Jim, one of the things about being a prosecutor or presenting a case to a jury is you're allowed to use common sense. You don't necessarily have to take a person's words at face value, but I think here, either way this could be a witness tampering. It is OK for a person to criticize a prosecution, to say I think someone is being treated unfairly. But if the intent is to prevent people from talking, from cooperating, from pleading guilty, that is where you cross the line into obstruction of justice.

Let's look at Donald Trump. He has a history of this. This is exactly what he did to stifle witnesses in the Mueller investigation. He dangled pardons. He ended up delivering pardons to Paul Manafort, to Michael Flynn, to Roger Stone, all of whom either refused to cooperate, or started and then stopped after the pardons were dangled.

And here the theory would be, well, if somebody is a January 6th defendant, and they think they're going to get pardoned at some future point, they are going to be less likely to plead, they're going to be less likely to cooperate because their incentive is removed. And we had a lawyer for one of the January 6th defendants who came on CNN's air earlier this week, and said, yes, this comment would make my client less likely to cooperate. So to me, that's what I would argue the intent behind Donald Trump's statements where it doesn't take an experienced lawyer to see that.

ACOSTA: But one of the things that I find ridiculous about all of this is that Trump had two weeks after January 6th while he was in office, he could have issued a blanket pardon to anybody -- I suppose you could do this, who knows if this would hold up legally, but a blanket pardon, anybody who was involved in January 6th, I hereby pardon. He didn't do it. When he had the chance to let these turkeys get off scot-free, he didn't do it.

HONIG: He could have done that, Jim. He legally could have issued a blanket pardon. That has been done before, a prospective pardon. He didn't. If I was advising one of these January 6th defendants, I'm not, but I'm saying hypothetically, I would tell them, don't hold your breath, here. Donald Trump could have issued the pardons back then. The earliest he can possibly become president again is January of 2025. That is three years from now. These cases, will they even still be going. And I certainly would not bank a lot of hope on it. But that said, if Trump's intent is to keep people silent, and even whether it works or not, and it looks like it may have some impact, that still could be witness tampering.

ACOSTA: And former DOJ official Jeffrey Clark, he is a key part in this plot to overturn the election results, pleaded the Fifth more than 100 times when he met with the January 6th committee. Now there's talk that he could get perhaps an immunity deal. What do you think about that, and the fact that this is a former Department of Justice official taking the Fifth 100 times?

[14:35:04]

HONIG: Yes, so let's start with this. Jeffrey Clark has the right to take the Fifth. Any person who thinks their testimony might incriminate them has that right. But what an utter shame and disgrace for somebody who was a high-ranking Justice Department official to have to do that.

The countermove the committee may make, and it will be up to them, is they could say we're going to immunize you, Jeffrey Clark, meaning, OK, you took the Fifth. You still have to testify, but we won't use your testimony against you. And as a practical matter, if that's the deal, then theoretically we would hear the testimony from Jeffrey Clark. But that would also mean under the law, it becomes essentially impossible for DOJ to prosecute Jeffrey Clark. This is what happened with Oliver North with the Iran-Contra scandal back in the 80s and 90s.

So there's an interesting interplay here. DOJ, if they intend to prosecute Jeffrey Clark, they should call over to the committee and say do not immunize him because we intend to charge him. But if DOJ has no interest in charging him whatsoever, then they wouldn't object to immunity. So we may get a little window into DOJ's thinking here.

ACOSTA: And Elie, finally, Mike Pence's comments yesterday to the Federalist Society telling Trump that he was wrong, the vice president can't overturn election results, and so on, it makes me wonder how you feel about Pence as a potential witness. Wouldn't he be the mother of all January 6th witnesses when it comes to getting to the bottom of the insurrection? And when I say the mother of all witnesses, no pun intended.

HONIG: Yes, right. I guess I would say he would be the vice mother of all witnesses after Trump himself, but in the world of potentially realistic witnesses, yes, he would.

And look it's very important that Mike Pence correctly said yesterday that he had no authority to overturn this election on his own, but that's really only the beginning. What's more important is for him to tell us what happened, what did Donald Trump do and say to Mike Pence during those key moments.

ACOSTA: Totally. And the issue is not so much -- it is definitely what happened on January 6th, but the days leading up to January 6th, when he was the subject of this pressure campaign to overturn the election results, to obstruct an act of Congress, and that is certification of election results, there is no other witness closer to all of this than the recipient of that pressure, which would be the vice president, it seems to me. But, Elie, we will have plenty of time to talk about this in the days moving forward. Elie Honig, thanks for your time, we appreciate it.

HONIG: Thanks, Jim.

ACOSTA: Coming up, the race to save a five-year-old boy who has been stuck down a well for four days now, why it has been so challenging to reach him. We will talk about that next. You are live in the CNN Newsroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:42:17]

ACOSTA: Rescuers are frantically digging to rescue a five-year-old boy who has been trapped deep in a well since Tuesday. This is in Morocco. The little boy fell into the well Tuesday afternoon. Now it appears emergency workers could be just a few feet from reaching him.

Let's go to Al Goodman who is tracking this rescue that the whole world is watching. Al, what is the latest on this rescue effort, how is the boy doing?

AL GOODMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENTS: Hi, Jim. Just in recent moments, we have seen video from the same TV cameras on the scene in northern Morocco. A large crowd of onlookers cheering, excitement, but there has been no sign of the boy. It has been dark for about an hour-and-a- half on the scene in Morocco. It's 7:00 p.m. local time there.

This is a rough area near the riff mountains, and they have done a whole sort of work, the rescuers, since Tuesday, since the boy fell in the hole. He was playing, his mother told authorities, and he got out of sight. He would disappear briefly, then she heard his cries, she realized he was in this deep well. That well is 100 feet down, and it's very narrow, just about a foot-and-a-half wide.

So what authorities have been doing according to reports is they've dug a parallel hole down, and now that they are basically at the depth of the boy, they are going across to try to reach him. They said that they are very close, but there are a lot of obstacles. They have had landslides, they've had boulders that they found in a way.

According to the authorities, the boy was alive on Friday, yesterday. According to the boy's father, food and water was given to the boy down in the well on Thursday. The father at the time said he told local TV that he thought he would be, he was hopeful the boy would be rescued, God willing, he added. Jim?

ACOSTA: And we are all hoping that occurs. And how delicate of an operation is this? I suppose they've had to take their time with it, because you don't want the whole thing collapsing.

GOODMAN: Absolutely. They have said repeatedly, authorities have told the reporters on the scene, this has been reported by the Moroccan news agency, that they do not want to get into the soil erosion. These things are delicate wherever they are done, and they're working in rough terrain in Morocco. They really are so close, they want to try to bring this to a good conclusion right now, so they are taking their time and being meticulous. Jim?

ACOSTA: Al Goodman keeping an eye on it, thanks very much. Let us know if they get to him, and we'll get right out to you. Thanks so much for that report, we appreciate it.

And now to Canada where it's the second straight weekend of trucker protests in Ottawa. The truckers are furious about new Canadian COVID- 19 vaccinate mandates. You are looking at live pictures right now from the Canadian capital.

[14:45:00]

You can see protesters in the middle of traffic there with large trucks, big trucks also blocking traffic, just really an incredible scene there as these anti-vaccine protests have been going on for some time now. Police are increasing personnel over reports that some demonstrators have made violent threats. CNN's Paula Newton has more.

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PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: 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 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: 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.

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: So desperate was this woman, she appealed directly to the protesters.

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

NEWTON: They heard her, but they're not listening -- it seems to anyone.

ADAM, RESIDENT: This has been nothing but disruptive. They're using -- they're claiming their freedom while I can't even hear anything. I can't even hear myself.

NEWTON: 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: 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: 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 descend, 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: And yet both police and political leaders are warning this now resembles an occupation with no quick or easy end.

Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.

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ACOSTA: Coming up, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in a super yacht that is so big he wants Dutch to dismantle a historic bridge just so he can pass through.

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ACOSTA: One in three U.S. bridges needs repair or replacement. That's according to a new report that found almost 44,000 bridges are classified as structurally deficient. At the current rate, it would take 30 years to fix all of them. In the meantime, a Dutch city may have to dismantle part of a historic bridge so that a super yacht owned by Jeff Bezos of Amazon can get through it. CNN's Nada Bashir reports.

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NADA BASHIR, CNN PRODUCER: The super yacht, reportedly commissioned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is under construction in Rotterdam. But in order to get it to the ocean, the Dutch city's historic steel bridge will have to be temporarily dismantled, a feat that is proving not quite as simple as an Amazon delivery, with some accusing Bezos of going a bridge too far.

MATTHIAS VAN DER WITT, ROTTERDAM RESIDENT: The more moneys you have, the more power you get, even though it goes against the principles of the city. The city says we're not going to do it.

RENE JONGENEEL, ROTTERDAM RESIDENT (through translator): What can I say? I guess big money wins again, as always. But it will also create some employment, of course. And I think that's important for this region as well.

BASHIR: When the bridge, known to locals as "De Hef," was last renovated in 2017, local officials promised the 19th century landmark would never again be dismantled, according to Dutch public broadcaster Rinewand (ph)

Authorities have acknowledged that the super yacht is a significant project for Rotterdam, considered Europe's maritime capital, benefiting the local economy and creating jobs.

Bezos and shipbuilding company Oceanco would also need to foot the bill. But some, including Rotterdam's Green Party, have questioned why the city should be forced to dismantle an iconic landmark for Bezos' personal gain. One local Green Party council has said, "This man has earned his money by structurally exploiting staff, evading taxes, and avoiding regulation. And now we have to take down our beautiful national monument? That is really going a bridge too far."

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Thousands have even signed up to an event shared on Facebook calling for locals to throw eggs at the super yacht once it finally sets sail. The request has also sparked debate further afield. U.S. House Representative Adam Schiff tweeting, "If Jeff Bezos can pay to dismantle a bridge in the Netherlands to fit his super yacht, then his company should have no trouble paying its fair share in taxes so we can build bridges in America."

For now, the request is still under consideration, which could mean a shipping delay for Bezos.

Nada Bashir, CNN, London.

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