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40 Million People Under Winter Or Severe Weather Threats; El Paso Seeing A Major Surge In Illegal Border Crossings; Lawmakers In Congress Introduced Bill To Ban TikTok; Newly Appointed Special Counsel Pushes Ahead On Trump Probes; Argentina Advances To Final After Beating Croatia 3-0. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired December 13, 2022 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

DR. ASHWIN VASAN, NEW YORK HEALTH COMMISSIONER: We also have a lot of treatments to keep people on the hospital like Paxlovid, which we are, you know, making sure that everyone over 65 in particular gets, who are at highest risk. But we are definitely seeing an uptick in hospitalization. And so, which is why we want to get ahead of this and put those masks on now over the next couple weeks so we can really bend this curve over the next few weeks and keep our hospitals and our health care capacity as stable as possible.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST: Yes, doctors and first care responders there had gone through so much. We have to think of them before anything else. We don't want a repeat of what we've seen. Dr. Ashwin Vasan, thank you.

VASAN: Absolutely.

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: Right now, about 40 million people across 12 states are under a severe weather threat as a powerful winter storm is moving east. Strong tornadoes are threatening the south. Blizzard conditions are creating a mess across the central and northern plains. Look at this. This is what's left of some homes and businesses in Dallas-Ft. Worth in the area there in Texas after a string of severe storms moved through earlier today. One man described the devastation in his neighborhood.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL LOPEZ, WITNESSED TORNADO: I literally opened the door to go and look outside, and I noticed a tornado was literally passing right next to us. So, I got my phone out. I decided to film it. And I saw all the power lines exploding and everything and after that it happened. All the cars passing by on the road started to stop. So, I decided to come and check on my neighbors, my front neighbors. So, whenever I came out here, yeah, I just noticed everything was destroyed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Unbelievable. And in nearby Grapevine, Texas, storms destroyed part of a gas station and knocked over a power pole. This is what it looked like in Washington County, Colorado, where heavy snow and strong winds cut visibility. The conditions there are creating a travel nightmare.

Meteorologist Jennifer Gray is tracking the storm for us. So, Jennifer, what are areas facing? What are the biggest risks right now?

JENNIFER GRAY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Well, it depends on where you are. We have a severe risk across the South. We have a wintery risk across the North which is also causing delays as you saw. So, in the South, we'll start there because a new tornado watch has just been issued until 10:00 Central time for portions of Louisiana, Arkansas and I believe that extends until 10:00 as mentioned.

Across the North we have blizzard conditions that have been on going across portions of Nebraska as well as eastern sections of Colorado. And so, we're going to continue to see that as we go into the overnight hours as well. So, some interstates have been closed in eastern Colorado east of Denver. This is I-70 and I-76, I believe. Those have been closed because of the snowy conditions.

And as these storms continue to march to the east, we'll continue to see the severe weather threat. Once it gets dark, that threat is going to become even more dangerous because people will be sleeping. They'll need a way to get weather alerts. And then as we get into tomorrow, the risk is going to be a little bit farther to the east.

That's going to include places like New Orleans, Mobile, the Florida Panhandle. And that's going to extend into tomorrow through about midday or so. So, we do expect these conditions to continue throughout the afternoon hours overnight, and then the stormy conditions will also be there through much of tomorrow as well -- guys.

BLACKWELL: All right, Jennifer Gray watching the storm for us, thank you, Jennifer.

The opposition is building against TikTok. U.S. lawmakers just introduced a bill to ban the social media app. More on that ahead.

GOLODRYGA: And any moment from now President Biden will sign the Respect for Marriage Act into law. Protecting same-sex and interracial marriages. We'll bring that to you live when it happens.

[15:35:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: El paso, Texas, has seen a major surge in illegal border crossings over the last several days. A senior border patrol official said agents encountered more than 2,400 migrants trying to cross into the U.S. each day over the weekend.

GOLODRYGA: CNN's Priscilla Alvarez is following this story for us. So, Priscilla, what's behind this recent surge and what are officials saying in terms of how they're going to respond to it?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, in just about a week we're expecting the end of Title 42. That's a public health authority invoked at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic that allows officials to turn migrants away at the U.S./Mexico border. Now a lower court order has told the administration they can no longer use this authority and it's expected to end on Wednesday.

All of this to say that migrants who have been waiting along Mexico's northern border have started to cross into the United States. There have also been movements of migrants in Mexico to the U.S.-Mexico border. And that leaves officials having to grapple with what they anticipated which is an increase of migrants as this is expected to end and when it does next week.

[15:40:00]

And the scenes that you're seeing there in El Paso is exactly what has been generating concern within the Biden administration which has been trying to shore up resources along the U.S. southern border in anticipation of this.

Now as you mentioned, a senior border patrol official called this, quote, a major surge in illegal crossings. This is the city that has already under strain. City officials telling reporters just moments ago that their shelter capacities are under strain and that they are working with federal partners to try to find a solution forward. City officials are monitoring the situation. Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas was in El Paso today and we're still waiting to learn about what he told officials while there.

BLACKWELL: All right, Priscilla Alvarez, thank you.

Soccer fans on edge. Will Lionel Messi make it through the semifinals of the World Cup? The latest on Argentina's match against Croatia next.

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[15:45:00]

GOLODRYGA: A new bill from Republican Senator Marco Rubio aims to ban TikTok in the U.S. The legislation is an escalation of a recent move by red state governors to eliminate the app from state devices. Alabama and Utah are the latest to join the effort.

BLACKWELL: South Dakota was the first state to do it over concerns that China, the government there, can access TikTok's information since its parent company is based in China. A TikTok executive testified to Congress that the company does not share data with the Chinese government. CNN's Oliver Darcy is here with details. So, tell us about the moves to get rid of TikTok.

OLIVER DARCY, CNN SENIOR MEDIA REPORTER: Yes, I think there are two things going on here, right. One is that lawmakers have legitimate concerns about TikTok, about whether U.S. data can be accessed by the Chinese -- which obviously TikTok says no -- and then whether China could eventually tweak the algorithm may be at some point to alter U.S. perception toward the Chinese government. Those are some concerns that lawmakers have. I think the other thing that's happening here is Republican lawmakers have.

I think the other thing that's happening here is Republican lawmakers primarily are using TikTok as the face of the Chinese government. And so, to show to their constituents, which is very popular right now, to have a hard stance on China, to show to their constituents that they're taking this hard line stance, they are basically saying we want to ban Tik-Tok and using this as a vehicle to deliver that message to their base.

GOLODRYGA: I guess the way you can sum it up is there's no real independent company in China right now, right. If the government wants access to data, they will get access from a data that's headquartered in the country. So, how you move forward? Because this is something President Trump at the time tried to get rid of and he got a lot of pressure not to.

DARCY: Yes, and I think this a -- I mean, we are so intermixed with China. I mean, I was talking to a TikTok source or someone familiar with them, and they were pointing out a lot of lawmakers are tweeting about a TikTok on their, you know, Chinese-made Apple iPhone. And so, it really shows how many businesses are reliant on China, and TikTok obviously one of them caught up in the mix right now.

BLACKWELL: Yes, and it's part of the conversation we've had about Twitter. People who are saying you shouldn't be on Twitter, it's a cesspool. Tweet out those statements to people on Twitter on the platform, they're saying people should boycott. So, point received. Oliver Darcy, thank you.

GOLODRYGA: Thanks Oliver.

DARCY: Thank you.

GOLODRYGA: The special counsel investigating Donald Trump's attempts to overturn the 2020 election is widening, his focus -- that's Cyndi Lauper.

Coming up, why the special counsel is now putting the microphone on swing states.

BLACKWELL: But first, Cindi Lauper. Now we can take the strap. She's performing at the White House. Of course, we're waiting for the president to sign the Respect for Marriage Act. Let's play a little bit of this before we go to break.

CINDI LAUPER, SINGER: Let them show your true colors your true colors are beautiful like a rainbow

[15:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLACKWELL: Special counsel Jack Smith's investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election has taken an increasingly aggressive turn. He's pressing for information from key swing states where former President Trump's allies sought to stop the election from being certified.

GOLODRYGA: CNN's Sara Murray joins us now. So, Sara, what is the special counsel looking at exactly?

SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well look, we are learning about new subpoenas that went to officials in Nevada, New Mexico and Georgia. We previously reported that subpoenas also went out to officials in Wisconsin, Michigan and Arizona. And what's clear is that the special counsel does want to broaden the probe that they have right now. And they want to look at efforts by Donald Trump, by members of his former presidential campaign, other aides and advisers and their potential communications with officials in these battleground states.

You know, we know for instance, in Georgia, that Donald Trump -- then the president -- called Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger asking him to overturn the vote, to find the votes needed for Trump to win. You know, we know that a top aide, former White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows showed up at an audit in Cobb County in Georgia when they were doing a ballot audit there.

So, it's pretty clear the special counsel does want to dig in on any contacts the Trump team may have had in these important swing states around 2020.

BLACKWELL: All right, Sara Murray for us there on Capitol Hill, thank you.

GOLODRYGA: And any moment from now, we've been showing you coverage from the White House. President Biden will sign the Respect for Marriage Act into law, protecting same-sex and interracial marriages. We'll bring that to you live.

[15:55:00]

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GOLODRYGA: Well, this just into CNN, do you know why I'm grinning from ear to ear?

BLACKWELL: I do, because I'm looking at the teleprompter. But go ahead you tell them.

GOLODRYGA: Argentina, I was rooting for Argentina just beat Croatia 3- 0 in the World Cup semifinals in Qatar. They now advance to the finals.

BLACKWELL: I appreciate everybody listening to this, watching us instead of that. CNN's sports anchor Coy Wire is with us now. Coy, fill us in on everything that happened.

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Well, this is an incredible match. Bianna knows because Argentina who are led by one of the greatest of all time Lionel Messi. They're facing Croatia who made it to the final of the last World Cup. They're a scrappy bunch. But many people pulling for Argentina and Messi in particular because he's never won a World Cup. It is the final feather in his cap. And he says this is his last World Cup tournament. So, it's really his chance to do it. But they end up winning 3-0 over Croatia. They're on a collision course now for the final.

[16:00:00]

The other semifinal match is tomorrow. That'll be against defending champions France facing the Cinderella story Morocco in that one. We'll see who Messi and Argentina will face.

GOLODRYGA: We have a bazillion Messi jerseys in my household. So, my son will be very happy when he hears this news after school.

BLACKWELL: Thank you, Coy.

WIRE: You got it.

GOLODRYGA: "THE LEAD WITH JAKE TAPPER" started right now.