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Mick Mulvaney is Interviewed about Transcripts Being Released; U.S. GDP Increased; Kelly Serr is Interviewed about the Winter Weather; Last Minute Shopping Tips; Air Travel for the Holiday. Aired 8:30-9a ET

Aired December 22, 2022 - 08:30   ET

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

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DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone, to CNN THIS MORNING.

Coming up in just moments, we're going to get some new data on jobless claims and the state of the economy.

Plus, we'll be joined by a meteorologist from the National Weather Service about the dangerous winter weather moving through the U.S.

And despite that weather, AAA predicts holiday travel will be close to pre-pandemic levels. The numbers straight ahead.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: The January 6th committee has released the transcripts of interviews with 34 witnesses, including former Trump attorney John Eastman, longtime operative Roger Stone, Trump's former national security advisor, Mike Flynn, and far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones. Most of them took the Fifth, refusing to answer questions. So we're still waiting on the committee to release more transcripts, though, given they ultimately spoke with more than a thousand witnesses. The committee is supposed to release its final report today.

Joining us now is the former acting chief of staff during the Trump administration, Mick Mulvaney, who served until March 2020 when Trump replaced him with Mark Meadows.

Mick, thank you so much for joining us this morning.

You know, you sat down with the January 6th committee. We're going to see your transcript. What do you think we'll see in that?

Mick, I don't think we can hear your audio. Are you muted?

MICK MULVANEY, FORMER ACTING CHIEF OF STAFF, TRUMP ADMINISTRATION: Sorry about that. Yes, is that better?

COLLINS: OK. Good. Much better. Now we can hear you.

MULVANEY: Sorry about that.

Yes, I didn't want to -

COLLINS: I know you were saying something really important, so.

MULVANEY: I am looking forward to the - to the transcripts being released for a variety of reasons, including my own, by the way. I think that they're going to give more texture to the story. Keep in mind, regardless of how you feel about Donald Trump one way or the other, everybody on the committee was against Donald Trump. Everybody asking the questions at the interviews was against Donald Trump. So what you sort of see in the January 6th hearing is the greatest hits of everything that's against Trump. If the witnesses said anything actually helpful to the president, or positive about the president, you'd find those in the transcripts. It may not be there. There may be no positive story to tell there. But at least by seeing the transcripts ourselves, getting a chance to look at them unfiltered, we get a chance to see a bigger part of the story, and I'm excited about that opportunity.

COLLINS: But you're not saying that when we actually see the transcripts there's going to be something that vindicates the former president, do you think, in this situation?

MULVANEY: I can't imagine. What I think you might find is other witnesses who might have contradicted witnesses that we saw on television. Was there somebody who said, for example, that they didn't see the president throw stuff up against the wall, that the president didn't say anything about there being weapons at the - at the rally. I don't think there's anything here that's going to vindicate him because I don't think it's a vindicatable sort of circumstance. But there may be things that sort of balance what we heard out of the witnesses.

Again, I encourage People realize the possibility that what they saw in the January 6th committee was simply one side of the story. There may not be another side, but we'll know a lot more about whether or not there is once all these transcripts come out.

COLLINS: Will there be any surprises in your transcript?

MULVANEY: Yes, there was actually some stuff that didn't come out in my - in my - in my transcript, mostly dealing with what happened between the election and sort of the end of the year. In that week after the election, when I was still active with the campaign, I was one of the national co-chairs. I was the chairman of Catholics for Trump in 2020. So, I was engaged in a lot of phone conversations in the days after the election. There were a lot of questions about that in the transcript. It didn't make it into the hearing for some reason. So, yes, there's a lot of information in mine at least that I think people will find interesting. And my guess is, if it's in mine, it's in everybody's.

COLLINS: Well, one thing that happened in that time period was a text message that you sent to Mark Meadows. You said, random thought to add to your quiver, an executive order creating a bipartisan commission on election fraud. Won't solve the problems now but may prevent them in 2024. And, who knows, vindicate what he has been saying all long. The Warren Commission was created by executive order. Trump could do it. You said Biden would not -- you did not think he'd have - that he would reverse it.

Can you explain that text? Well, first, let me say, the Warren Commission, obviously, is what LBJ established to investigate the assassination of President Kennedy. Can you explain what you were suggesting mark meadows do?

MULVANEY: Yes, this was late December, I think, or maybe mid-December, right after the elections. We were still in 2020.

COLLINS: Late November.

MULVANEY: Yes, we're still in 2020. Then it's right after the election. And what I was looking for is ideas to give to Meadows, to give to the president, about sort of ways to honorably get out of office, to leave office honorably and peacefully without having things get out of control. And one of the things he could have done was create a bipartisan commission that says, look, I'm leaving, I understand that this election has been certified, I get that, but there's a lot of folks who still are unsure about some of the things about the election. I'm going to do a truly bipartisan commission. I'm going to do an executive order. And even though I'll be gone out of office, that commission will continue to be able to have the ability to do the investigations they need to do. Sort of a January 6th committee but sort of one that is actually bipartisan.

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I thought that was a face-saving opportunity for the president, which is why I shared it with Mark Meadows. I wasn't communicating directly with the president at that time and was hoping that idea got to him. If they had really been interested in getting to the bottom of what happened, I think they might have taken that advice. In hindsight it looks now like the president wasn't interested in actually getting to the bottom as much as he was just overturning the results.

COLLINS: You sent that text on November 23rd. It was pretty clear by then there was no evidence of widespread fraud. Don't you think that if they had created a commission like that, it would have just given a veneer of credibility to Trump's false claims?

MULVANEY: No, I mean, keep in mind, November 23rd, people said there was no widespread evidence of fraud. I got a lot of my information about the lack of evidence of fraud in the January 6th commission meetings, which were several months later. Keep in mind, one of the most compelling pieces of testimony from the January 6th commission where Bill Barr's testimony where he said under oath now that he told the president that he didn't see any of these. That wasn't publicly available information. I didn't get that from Bill Barr. I didn't get that from CNN or the Washington news back then. We got that several months later.

So, no, I think it's fair to say that there was a large percentage of the country that was still unsettled as to the outcome late in November and I do not think that a fact-finding - a truly bipartisan now fact-finding commission would be white washing in any sense of the word. Again, I think it would have been an honorable way to lead and a peaceful way to lead, but simply advice that wasn't taken.

COLLINS: I actually think it was a week or two later that Bill Barr said to "The Washington Post" there was no evidence of fraud, something that obviously Trump was not happy with.

I want you to respond to something, though, that Liz Cheney said at the culmination of the January 6th committee, in their final public meeting this week.

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REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): No man, who would behave that way, at that moment in time, can ever serve in any position of authority in our nation again.

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COLLINS: Do you agree with her?

MULVANEY: Yes, listen, there's only two groups that get to make that decision. I understand that Liz doesn't like the president. I get that. A lot of folks don't. That's fine. But there's only two groups that get to do what she just said, which is, number one, the House and the Senate acting together to deprive someone of their ability to sit for office and, number two, the voters. Those - one of those two things will have to happen. Liz Cheney doesn't get to wave a magic wand and say that Donald Trump doesn't get to run for office. I've already said that I don't think he's a very good candidate for office. I won't be supporting him. But that doesn't mean that you get to wave a magic wand and say this person or that person can't run for office. I think it's a very dangerous sort of place to be. We have constitutional protections designed to tell us who can and cannot run for office. And Liz Cheney and the January 6th commission are not part of that constitutional sort of authority.

COLLINS: Mick Mulvaney, thanks for joining us this morning.

MULVANEY: Thank you.

COLLINS: Just in, we have new unemployment data that was just release. Christine Romans is here to break it all down.

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LEMON: All right, everyone, so this just in. We just got new data that shows the U.S. economy growing much stronger than expected. Let's turn now to Christine Romans, our chief business correspondent.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

LEMON: What are you seeing in these numbers? What's the data? ROMANS: So, guys, this is third quarter GDP. The first and second - the second reading was 2.9 percent. They've revised it up to 3.2 percent. That is a strong performance. An economy doing well with consumer spending and export growth. That's what the government says.

These are those two quarters this summer, remember earlier this year when we had the shrinking U.S. economy, people were saying it was a recession. It was very shallow. You still had a very strong job market. And a lot of economists said, no, this doesn't feel too recessiony. We think that there's pent-up demand. Look, this is a bounce back, a very big bounce back. These are these quarters coming out of Covid when the economy just exploded here.

So, this is a strong performance for a U.S. economy.

COLLINS: What about the - what are the jobs numbers looking like today?

ROMANS: So, jobless claims. We look at these every week. These are how many people filed for the very first time for unemployment benefits. Last week it was 216,000. That's up about 2,000. But the important thing to watch here is how low this number is right around this 200,000 mark. Before the pandemic, you know, you were looking at 225, 250 was seen as a decent, strong labor market, a strong labor market. We're right back there. So you are not seeing signs of strain in the American job market, at least in layoffs.

We hear about layoffs in tech. Important to put this in perspective. Technology is about 7 or 8 percent of all the jobs in America. So you are seeing these big layoffs in places that got real big during the pandemic but overall the job market also is still pretty healthy, guys.

LEMON: So, this is all good news.

ROMANS: Yes, this is -- this number is a - this is a good number.

LEMON: All right.

ROMANS: This is an economy that is firing on all cylinders.

LEMON: That's good. Thank you very much, Christine.

COLLINS: Christine Romans.

LEMON: Appreciate it.

So, life-threatening winter weather. We're going to talk to people seeing wind chills that could turn deadly.

COLLINS: And this morning's number is 113. Harry is here to explain.

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[08:47:36] LEMON: A once in a generation winter storm is wreaking havoc that is creating life-threatening weather across this country. Take a look at this. This is Kansas City right now. Whiteout conditions hammering the city at this hour. Roughly a third of the U.S. population is under a winter wind chill or freeze alert with temperatures plummeting as much as 50 degrees in the last 24 hours.

Joining us now is Kelly Sear, she is the warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service, and she joins us now from South Dakota, where she lives. Windchill temperatures are hovering around a life-threatening negative 40 to 50 degrees. The airport in that area has just closed. So, we're glad that you could join us. We hope that you are safe.

Can you describe what negative 40 and 50 degrees, a windchill like that, even feels like?

KELLY SERR, WARNING COORDINATION METEOROLOGIST, NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE: It's rough is what it is. You know, you get all bundled up, you put your globes and your hat on and your cover everything and you cover everything up to your eyes and then you breathe and that moisture like freezes on your eye lashes and it just becomes a very terrible experience.

But, luckily for us, we have nice warm buildings where we can stay safe and wait this out.

COLLINS: And, Kelly, what if someone does have to go out though? I know, obviously, authorities are asking people, try not to drive. But if you do have to get on the road, if there's an emergency or you have to travel, what should -- what precautions should people be taking?

SERR: Well, if you do, if you absolutely have to get on the road, make sure you have an emergency kit in your vehicle. And that emergency kit is going to keep -- you're going to keep things that are going to keep you warm in the event that you do get stranded or your vehicle stalls. So you want to make sure you have the hat, the mitten, the gloves, your warm winter coat, blankets, some extra food, make sure your cell phone is with you, an extra battery, external battery charger for your cell phone so that you can call for help when you need it. All of these things are imperative that you have with you.

And then we do tell people, if you get stranded, don't leave your vehicle. Stay with your vehicle and wait for emergency services to get to you.

LEMON: Yes, it can sneak up on you, especially under these conditions. Talk to us about frostbite and how quickly it can happen.

SERR: Yes, we are seeing wind chills values. And so that's the - the air temperature combined with the strong winds that really creates this hazardous conditions to humans. And these windchill values are anywhere from 40 below to we've seen 60 below for some locations across South Dakota.

[08:50:05] And then it's just a matter of minutes - a matter of minutes, five to 10 minutes and your skin can start freezing. So, we really tell people to limit their exposure outside, limit travel if you have to, and just wait until conditions improve.

COLLINS: And how long do we expect this to last?

SERR: Unfortunately, for us here in South Dakota, we are not going to -- our actual temperature won't get above zero until Christmas. So, we're going to be in the negatives all the way through the rest of the week here. So, we have a few days to sit and wait this out and then it does gradually improve as we head into next week.

LEMON: Kelly Serr, thank you very much. I didn't know that there was such a thing as a warning coordination meteorologist, but we're certainly glad that there is one and that you're around. Be safe. Thank you and happy holidays.

SERR: Thanks for having me.

COLLINS: All right, I hope my family isn't watching this, but if you still haven't finished your holiday shopping, like me, you might be scrambling to get it all done. You may not have the time or the patience, though, to shop.

CNN underscored senior editor Michael Andronico is here to talk to us about this.

I -- can I please read this thing that I saw yesterday? My sister is sitting in studio. She's going to laugh. This -- there was this meme going around, it said, Christmas is this week and everyone's presents are still in my notes app. That's literally me right now.

MICHAEL ANDRONICO, CNN UNDERSCORED SENIOR EDITOR: That's me as well. Yes, I think a lot of us are still in that spot. We're all in that last minute shopping mode. And, fortunately, there are still some things you can do. I think the number one thing, if you are trying to get a physical gift shipped to somebody, you're going to want to use services like Amazon Prime and Walmart Plus, which do offer the fastest shipping. Amazon will actually let you know if an item will arrive in time for Christmas, right on the store page. And as of this morning, there were still items that meet that deadline.

COLLINS: So, these subscription services, is that something that - maybe that's something that people could give as a gift? What is that idea?

ANDRONICO: Absolutely. Digital gift cards and subscriptions are a great last-minute gift. These are things you can literally buy Christmas Day and have e-mailed or texted to a loved one immediately. And we actually test a lot of these services. So, some options we really love are Atlas Coffee Club for a coffee lover. If you have a gamer in your life, xBox Game Pass. Obviously, a music lover, maybe you get them Spotify Premium. So, there are a lot of great options. And, of course, just buying an Amazon or Walmart or Best Buy gift card, having it sent to you -- someone on your list the day of. COLLINS: Yes, I feel like I'm going to be gifting a lot of gift cards.

What other inspiration could people have if they're - they're going out today, they're doing some last-minute shopping? What are some gift ideas, the top gift ideas that you're seeing people buy this year for their loved ones?

ANDRONICO: Yes, absolutely. Things we're really seeing resonate with our readers are small, practical items that can make a big difference. Things like scented candles, shower bombs, strip lights for decorating your home and copying all the trends you see on TikTok. So, these things are inexpensive and unlike like of like a big-ticket piece of electronics or appliance, like they will actually ship in time. So, just those kind of small, practical things that allow people to enjoy some self-care and make their life a little bit better.

COLLINS: All right, Michael, thank you so much for that inspiration at the last minute.

ANDRONICO: Thank you.

LEMON: All right, so that's gifts. So, let's turn to travel now and our number. Our senior data reporter, Mr. Harry Enten, is here.

What's the number?

HARRY ENTEN, CNN SENIOR DATA REPORTER: This morning's number is 113 million. That's the number of Americans forecasted to travel for the upcoming holidays. That includes all long-distance travelers, 50 plus miles. I will note that is up from 109 million last year. Now there's all this talk, right, of weather interrupting travel, the flights, everything's getting to get delayed.

There's Kaitlan. She's right there with you.

COLLINS: Snuck up behind you. Just like this winter storm.

ENTEN: Snuck up on you.

But how are the 113 million expected to travel? Most don't actually travel by plane. The vast majority - the vast majority actually travel by automobile, 90 percent. The percentage that travel by airplane, 6 percent, is nearly equal to the percentage that travel by bus, rail, or cruise at 4 percent.

LEMON: It's only 6 percent by air?

ENTEN: Only 6 percent by air.

COLLINS: That doesn't surprise me.

LEMON: Yes.

COLLINS: A lot of people drive.

ENTEN: A lot of people - COLLINS: People are canceling trips, though, because of the weather.

LEMON: Yes, but as many live shots as we do from airports, I mean, maybe we should be hanging out on the roads.

ENTEN: That's exactly right. That's right.

LEMON: Yes.

ENTEN: I was talking to security downstairs and they were like, we're all traveling by car. And it's the common folk who travel by car and perhaps some of the more people who go those long distances have to, of course, travel by plane.

And here's the thing to note, how far do you normally travel if you're going long distance. Not that far. The plurality actually only travel about 50 to 99 miles. And then you add it up with the folks who travel 100 and 249 miles, 30 percent there, you've got 75 percent who are traveling 250 miles or less. Very few people are traveling say 500 plus miles or 250 to 499 miles.

Now, of course, as we're traveling, the question is, when is the best time perhaps to travel to avoid the traffic? This is something I'm keeping in mind. I'm getting out of here after the show tomorrow.

[08:55:00]

The best time on Friday, pre-2:00 p.m. or post-8:00 p.m., Saturday, pre-11:00 a.m. or post-7:00 p.m. Or, if you want to travel on Christmas Day, all day is good.

COLLINS: Yes, because no one's traveling.

LEMON: OK. So - but you forgot one.

ENTEN: What?

LEMON: You forgot that people who are traveling by sleigh -

ENTEN: Oh, yes.

LEMON: And -- on Christmas Eve.

ENTEN: That's right. Santa.

LEMON: Yes.

ENTEN: I think Santa is going to be OK. But I do wonder, you know, what is the biggest stress, speaking of Santa, what causes you the most stress during the holidays?

LEMON: Buying presents. There you go. I got - yes, you knew that.

ENTEN: It's finding the right gifts at 28 percent. That's been quite difficult for me. The girlfriend, I secretly got her gift, she may be watching right now but she won't know what it is. LEMON: What did you get her?

COLLINS: What did you get her?

LEMON: We won't tell.

ENTEN: I'm not -- I'm not - I'm not saying that.

COLLINS: I'll tell you if it's a good gift or not.

ENTEN: Yes, you'll tell me afterwards. Traveling, 24 percent. So I think makes sense, a lot of people are stressing about tomorrow. But, still, finding the right gift. It's not to late, folks, get a good one.

LEMON: All right. Thank you very much.

ENTEN: Thank you.

LEMON: We appreciate that, Harry.

COLLINS: All right, dangerous weather striking the U.S. CNN is going to have the latest all day. Snow hitting the Midwest, life threatening cold is moving across the country and 1,200 flights canceled so far already today. Not going to be good for those who are flying.

LEMON: Not at all. They're going to update you all today.

CNN "NEWSROOM" starts right after this break, everybody.

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