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Article of Impeachment Now in the U.S. Senate; DOJ Watchdog to Probe Possible Effort to Overturn U.S. Election; President Joe Biden to Outline Racial Equity Agenda; World Leaders Wait for U.S. Foreign Policy Changes; Frustration with Slow Pace of E.U. Vaccinations; Vaccines Prevent Illness, Not Necessarily Infection; Lakers Remember Kobe Bryant. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired January 26, 2021 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): You can't just sweep some of these egregious things under the rug, plain and simple. Trump was -- you know, his act on
the 6th was the most despicable thing any president has ever done.
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST (voice-over): This hour, the Senate is just hours away from swearing in the jurors for Donald Trump's second impeachment
trial.
Plus --
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URSULA VAN DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Europe invested billions to help develop the world's first COVID-19 vaccines.
ASHER (voice-over): The E.U. slams vaccine companies with distribution delays.
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ASHER (voice-over): And zogball rock 'n' roll. How The Flaming Lips have given the term "COVID bubble" a brand-new meaning.
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ASHER: Hello and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Zain Asher in for Becky Anderson.
The U.S. Senate is gaveling in to session which will allow Democrats to take full control of the chamber. The 100 senators will be sworn in as
impeachment jurors in the trial of Donald Trump. The single charge of impeachment against former president Donald Trump, incitement of
insurrection.
They walked through the same halls of Congress that were ransacked by a violent pro-Trump mob just a few weeks ago, leaving a police officer and
four others dead. The trial starts about two weeks from now, giving Trump time to assemble his legal team.
It's just the fourth impeachment trial in American history and the second against this president, Donald Trump. And it's happening, despite growing
Republican opposition. The new President Joe Biden told Kaitlan Collins the trial has to happen, supports it, even though he doesn't think there's a
chance of conviction.
And even though it could actually impact his legislative agenda. Lauren Fox has more on this unprecedented second impeachment trial and the pushback of
Republicans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LAUREN FOX, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A historic march through the halls of the U.S. Capitol, nearly three weeks after a deadly
insurrection took place within its walls.
Nine House impeachment managers delivering a single article of impeachment to the Senate Monday night, formally beginning the second impeachment trial
against former president Donald Trump.
REP. JAMIE RASKIN (D-MD.): Donald John Trump, President of the United States, is impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors.
FOX (voice-over): Ten House Republicans joined House Democrats last week to charge Trump with incitement of insurrection, saying he encouraged a
violent mob to storm the U.S. Capitol January 6th in an effort to overturn the election results.
TRUMP: We fight like hell and, if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore.
FOX (voice-over): The House also pointing to Trump's phone call with Georgia's secretary of state earlier this month, asking him to find votes
to reverse Trump's loss.
RASKIN: In all this, president Trump greatly endangered the security of the United States and its institutions of government.
FOX (voice-over): Senators will be sworn in as jurors later today and a trial will begin the week of February 8th, the timeline allowing Trump's
team to prepare and space to confirm President Biden's cabinet nominees.
PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION NOMINEE: It's not going to be easy to manage all these things at once. But it's absolutely
imperative.
FOX (voice-over): Biden telling CNN he's doubtful there are enough Republicans willing to convict Trump but he also believes the impeachment
trial has to happen, despite the effect it could have on advancing his agenda.
REP. MADELEINE DEAN (D-PA): I believe we will put forward a very strong case that, of course, is already in the public view of what took place
here.
FOX (voice-over): Even with the bipartisan passing of the article in the House, many Republicans oppose the trial against Trump.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It seems very much counterproductive, if you're the -- President Biden to say we'll take the precious first few days of a new
administration and we're going to squander it on this impeachment trial.
FOX (voice-over): The trial moving forward as the Justice Department's internal watchdog launched an investigation looking into whether any DOJ
officials participated in attempts to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election.
The probe after news reports indicated Trump may have attempted to use the DOJ to challenge the election results in a plan that sources say included
ousting acting attorney general Jeffrey Rosen.
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SEN. MARK WARNER (D-VA): Anyone that is trying to approach this with a -- any kind of open mindedness, it seems like the evidence keeps mounting.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: The upcoming impeachment trial isn't stopping the new president from pushing ahead with the agenda for his first 100 days. The Biden
administration has outlined a different policy plank for each day.
Today it revolves around what the administration calls equity. The president is poised to sign a series of executive actions, focusing on
police and prison reform and public housing. White House correspondent Jeremy Diamond joins us with the latest.
Before we get to all of that, before we get to Joe Biden's executive actions, I just want to focus on what he said about supporting the
impeachment of former president Donald Trump. Joe Biden has talked often about the importance of unity in this country, how divided America is right
now.
Don't those quotes ring a bit hollow if he does end up supporting the impeachment of the former president?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, and that is why we've seen this White House straddle a very fine line here. You've seen when Jen
Psaki, the White House press secretary, has been asked about impeachment, she always kicks it back to the Senate and says, it's up to the senators to
decide how they'll vote, whether or not to convict.
And she has not laid out whether President Biden supports convicting president Trump on this single article of impeachment or barring him from
holding future office.
President Biden, when he caught up with our colleague, Kaitlan Collins, just yesterday, he also didn't weigh in on that specific question. He did
acknowledge he believes this trial has to happen, that it is inevitable but also that it needs to happen in terms of the accountability process that is
happening here.
He also made clear that, while he does believe there will be some impact on his legislative agenda, that ultimately he thinks it would be worse if the
Senate did not take up this trial and did not proceed with this process of accountability.
But you're right. There's certainly a contradiction between that and the message of unity we're hearing from the president; at the same time, this
is a process that Democrats, the majority of the Democratic caucus in the House and Senate, wanted to push forward.
And, frankly, if President Biden stood out against impeachment, he would be putting himself at odds not only with his political base but also with many
of those Democrats who he needs to get his agenda passed in Congress.
ASHER: And what's happening today, the president's focus is clearly on leveling the playing field economically, also in terms of justice to
African Americans, many of whom have been left behind in this pandemic.
But also, this is hugely important when you consider what happened last year, racial justice really taking center stage in this country after the
death of George Floyd.
But what do these executive actions mean in practical terms?
What do they change on the ground?
DIAMOND: Yes, these are some initial steps that President Biden is going to be taking to address issues of racial equity in this administration.
We've already seen him address it in terms of the pandemic.
In his national strategy, racial equity is one of the seven goals laid out in terms of ensuring that there is equitable distribution of a vaccine,
equitable access to testing, given that we know there are already racial disparities in terms of all of those things as it relates to the
coronavirus pandemic.
Today we are going to see action from the president on police reform, prison reform and promoting equitable housing policies as well. On the
prison reform front, we are going to see executive orders that will help improve conditions in prisons, taking steps to begin to eliminate private
prisons in the United States.
And on the police reform front, we'll see the president create a policing commission, which is a promise he made during the 2020 campaign, and also
barring the transfer of military equipment to police departments in the United States. That was an Obama-era policy which president Trump revoked
and we are now seeing President Biden reinstate.
To be clear, these are modest steps, some of these procedural in terms of setting up commissions and beginning the process of doing certain things.
But there are limits to the executive authority that the president has.
But it is in terms of setting the tone that this is a focus of his agenda and a key platform he plans to engage on over his four years in office and
certainly a stark contrast from the previous president, who sidestepped this issue of racism and policing in the United States altogether.
ASHER: When it comes to some of Joe Biden's detractors, a lot of liberals, who may not be in favor of Joe Biden, point to some of his controversial
voting records when it comes to criminal justice, prison reform dating back 30 years or so.
How much is all of that, all of Joe Biden's controversial past when it comes to racial justice in this country, how much does that cast a shadow
and haunt him still now?
DIAMOND: Well, it haunted him during the 2020 campaign.
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DIAMOND: Given, you know, when Joe Biden was in the Senate, he had a -- he was the chairman of the Judiciary Committee or the top Democrat on the
Judiciary Committee, depending on the moment. In the '90s, he was a key part of passing that crime bill, which implemented the three strikes rule
and several other policies that hyped up the incarceration, in particular, of African Americans here in the United States in the decades that
followed.
So that was something he had to reckon with in the 2020 campaign and he was able to do so successfully in the sense that he still was able to draw
overwhelming support from African Americans, particularly in the primaries, which helped him secure the Democratic nomination.
No question that Joe Biden has had, like many other politicians who have been in politics for decades now, a conversion on this issue of criminal
justice. The country has really moved on this issue and Joe Biden has as well.
So I think you'll see him focus on police reform in this administration and it will be different from the policies that he implemented in the '90s. And
certainly Joe Biden has acknowledged that. He has apologized for some of those policies and the impacts they've had. We'll see how much action he
can bring forward in his four years in office.
ASHER: Jeremy Diamond, thank you so much.
Joe Biden is staring down an army of foreign policy issues. Beijing hopes his administration will not politicize and weaponize the issue of science
and technology.
A government spokesperson had been asked to respond to Mr. Biden after he said he will not let Chinese companies misuse American data. In the last
few weeks of his presidency, Donald Trump had ratcheted up pressure on Chinese tech companies. As Selina Wang explains, this rivalry isn't going
anywhere anytime soon.
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BIDEN: I, Joseph Robinette Biden Jr., do solemnly swear .
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The U.S.-China technology war likely won't end under a Biden presidency. Biden may take a more nuanced
approach than Trump to diplomacy but the tech rivalry will likely intensify concerns over how Chinese bay (ph) technology can be weaponized for
surveillance and hacking.
Plus allegations that Beijing steals American tech may persist. So will the battle for supremacy in 5G, quantum computing artificial intelligence,
biotechnology and space.
BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: China is our most serious global competitor and this competition will be one of the central
challenges of the century.
WANG (voice-over): Trump set into motion the decoupling of the two economies, slapping tariffs on Chinese products, blacklisting top tech
companies, banning popular Chinese apps.
In his final weeks in office, Trump attempted to cement his tough on China legacy. He signed an executive order, banning transactions with eight
Chinese apps, including then tech giant Ant Group's Alipay, Tencent Holdings Ltd's QQ Wallet and WeChat Pay.
He slapped restrictions on China's smartphone maker Xiaomi and a top chip maker, cutting them off from U.S. suppliers. He also barred investment in
Chinese businesses with alleged military ties.
It is unclear if these orders will be implemented. His previous efforts to ban TikTok and WeChat have been halted by legal challenges in U.S. courts.
WANG: Experts say Biden may reverse some of Trump's most recent actions against China's tech. But the key difference in Biden's approach will be
his multilateral strategy and investments at home. Biden's campaign, including a $300 billion investment in technologies, like artificial
intelligence, electric vehicles and 5G.
WANG (voice-over): Gone are the days of Donald Trump's unilateral brinkmanship.
SCOTT KENNEDY, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: We may see a refined, modified approach to protecting America's technology crown
jewels, in particular, greater expansion of coordination, collaboration with our allies in Europe and Asia, who have faced the same types of
challenges with China in technology.
WANG (voice-over): Trump's attempts to cut off China's tech giants showed Beijing how vulnerable it is to the U.S. Regardless of Biden's approach,
China is doubling down on its strategy to become a self-reliant technological power. It's clear that this tech cold war is here to stay, a
costly battle for both sides of the Pacific -- Selina Wang, CNN, Tokyo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Turning to the Middle East, where governments are waiting to see how U.S. foreign policy changes, after four years of mixed signals from
Washington. Many top officials from the Obama White House are coming back, including Mr. Biden's pick for secretary of state.
The U.S. Senate is getting ready to vote on confirming Antony Blinken in just a few hours. Ben Wedeman gives us a closer look at all of this from
Beirut.
How will a Biden administration change the U.S.' relationship with a lot of countries in the Middle East, particularly Iran, and rejoining the JCPOA?
What are your thoughts?
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Certainly, you know, you have to go back decades to find an incoming U.S. administration that can
look at the Middle East without its hair going gray. And the Biden administration will be no exception.
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CHIEF JUSTICE JOHN ROBERTS, U.S. SUPREME COURT: Congratulations, Mr. President.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): The new resident of the White House faces a Middle East deep in a confusion of crises.
Yemen remains the world's worst humanitarian emergency, followed closely by Syria, where millions are struggling through a brutal winter as their
country's agony lives on.
Blood still flows in Iraq, even though the scourge of ISIS appears, for now, to have been diminished.
Four chaotic years of Donald Trump saw the U.S. cozy up to the region's autocrats, careening close to the brink of war with Iran. Already, the new
administration is showing it will do some things differently.
ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE NOMINEE: We will end our support for the military campaign led by Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Tensions could recede as the Biden administration tries to revive the Iran nuclear deal, the JCPOA, says the Carnegie
Institute's Mohanad Hage Ali in Beirut.
MOHANAD HAGE ALI, CARNEGIE MIDDLE EAST CENTER: Iranians can't continue to bomb and help their allies or support their allies, bomb the U.S. embassy
in Iraq or the -- Riyadh's airport or any of these important facilities while they negotiate the JCPOA and as the JCPOA is (INAUDIBLE).
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Have knock-on effects in Syria, Yemen, Iraq and Lebanon, where Iran is a major player.
The Trump administration did manage to orchestrate the establishment of ties between Israel and several Arab states, a move praised by its
successor.
Washington also recognized Jerusalem as Israel's capital, opened an embassy there and generally sided with Israel as never before, all but killing the
two-state solution, which means Washington now needs to come up with new ways to address the conflict, as do the Palestinians themselves.
ALI: Perhaps the one-state solution has a more viable option, calling, asking for their rights as full citizens in the state rather than calling
for a second state, which has no now basis on the ground.
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WEDEMAN: And gone, of course, are Trump's grandiose regional schemes, like the "deal of the century" that was supposed to end the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict and also his policy of maximum pressure on Iran, which was intended essentially to wage economic war on Iran, bringing its economy to
its knees and, therefore, hopefully getting Iran to discard its nuclear program.
None of those worked. But of course, now we have a new administration with many old faces from the Obama and Clinton administrations, which don't have
a very good track record themselves when it comes to the Middle East -- Zain.
ASHER: A slew of issues for the Biden administration to deal with in that region. Ben Wedeman, thank you so much.
Of course, the most pressing issue for the current president is the pandemic. Ahead on the show, the concerns states already have over the
president's goal to get at least a million vaccines a day.
Plus, some manufacturers are getting a stern warning from top European officials as the E.U. worries it will fall behind in the race to vaccinate
its citizens.
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ASHER: The European Commission is accusing the British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca of having insufficient explanations for delays in
supplying the COVID-19 vaccines.
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VAN DER LEYEN: Europe invested billions to help develop the world's first COVID-19 vaccines, to create a truly global common good.
And now the companies must deliver. They must honor their obligations. And this is why we will set up a vaccine expert transparency mechanism. Europe
is determined to contribute to this global common good. But it also means business.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Ursula van der Leyen saying the companies must deliver. But AstraZeneca is saying production has been hampered by a manufacturing
issue. The E.U. is also calling out American company Pfizer. Earlier this month it said it would be delivering fewer doses than planned as it
upgraded one of its manufacturing facilities in Belgium.
Let's bring in senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen.
How significant are these delays for the E.U.?
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SR. MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I think they were waiting for these vaccines. They were counting on these vaccines to help
contain the outbreak. So not getting them, it is indeed a big deal. It will be interesting to see how this conflict between the E.U. and AstraZeneca
plays out.
What it seems like the E.U. is saying is, look, you say you have manufacturing delays. Be more transparent about what those delays are and
how big they are.
Listen, there are going to be manufacturing delays when you're trying to make a large amount of vaccine that you haven't done before. These vaccines
are very tricky to make, much trickier than other medicines. So again, delays or manufacturing problems, that's not unexpected.
The question is, are they going to be transparent about what's happened and when they will be able to fulfill their obligations?
I'm sure there are folks in the E.U., who are thinking, is it really manufacturing delays or did you sell this vaccine to someone else?
I imagine those questions are in people's heads -- Zain.
ASHER: Elizabeth, pivoting to the U.S., President Joe Biden set a goal of delivering 100 million doses in terms of the vaccine, the first 100 days.
Now they are saying, the administration saying they could achieve 1.5 million doses per day.
Are they on track to reach that number?
What are your thoughts?
COHEN: You know, it's very difficult to tell what they'll be able to do. These manufacturing delays could have something to do with it.
But some folks feel like they aimed pretty low. A million a day should not be that big of a deal in a country as large as the U.S. So upping it a
little bit to 1.5 million -- actually that's upping it quite a bit -- but even upping it that amount should not be that big of a deal.
My guess is, if he is saying it, he feels pretty confident that it's going to happen because it would be a major mistake to put out numbers and then
not meet that goal. That's what the Trump administration did at the end of last year when they talked about 20 million doses being given out by the
end of the year. They got a lot of heat for that.
And so I'm sure the Biden administration is being very careful to give out numbers they think they can actually achieve.
ASHER: And so many sort of fears and so much misinformation when it comes to vaccines that I think it's worth having your expertise on the show to
clarify something.
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ASHER: Israel is actually saying that some people who have actually had both doses of the vaccine are still testing positive for the coronavirus.
But just explain to our audience, that doesn't necessarily mean -- firstly, that's only a very small number. It's rare for that to happen. But it
doesn't mean the vaccines don't work.
COHEN: That's right. So there are two different things we want to look for here. That vaccines -- some vaccines do prevent infection. Others prevent
people from getting sick. These vaccines fall into the second category. Let's take a look at this.
These vaccines, Pfizer and Moderna, do not necessarily prevent people from catching coronavirus. In other words, they don't prevent you from getting
infected. What they do quite well is prevent people from getting sick with COVID-19.
When we hear 95 percent effective, that means it's 95 percent effective at keeping people from getting sick with COVID-19. In those trials, it is
possible that many of those people were infected. They just were not actively ill.
And that's OK. Getting infected is less of the issue. We don't want people to get sick, get in the hospital and die. If enough people get vaccinated,
then if people are infected, it's not going to be such a big problem. People will still be prevented from getting actually sick.
ASHER: Another thing, Elizabeth, that people are worried about is vaccine resistance. So much talk about, here in the U.S., different parts around
the world, these different variants. There's a variant from Brazil, from the U.K., from South Africa.
How much of a concern, I think, particularly for the South African variant, is vaccine resistance?
COHEN: Right. There's quite a bit of concern. And I wouldn't want to use the word "resistant" because that makes it sound like the vaccine won't
work at all. I'm not hearing experts saying that.
What I'm hearing them say is they are concerned, based on work done in the lab, that these vaccines might not prevent -- might not be fully effective
against the variant from South Africa that we -- these vaccines have been shown to be 95 percent effective against earlier versions of this virus.
They might not be quite as effective.
But even if they're 90 percent, 80 percent, 75 percent, that is still a very, very effective vaccine. We don't know the answer. It may be fully
effective. It may not.
But there are real concerns with the variant first spotted in South Africa, unlike the one first spotted in the U.K. The sort of general consensus is
that that one does look OK for the vaccine. We don't know for sure but it appears to be OK. Many more concerns for the one first spotted in South
Africa.
ASHER: Thank you so much for clarifying that there's a difference and it's so important to distinguish between lower efficacy and outright resistance.
So the resistance is not what we're concerned with. There may be some concern with efficacy. Elizabeth Cohen, thank you so much.
Around the world, the pandemic and the vaccine rollout has exposed and exacerbated a massive rich and poor divide. The Middle East has become a
microcosm of what's happening around the world. We have an in-depth look written by our very own producer, Sophia Saifi. You can check out that
article on cnn.com.
New U.K. travel restrictions could be on the way. We go live to Heathrow Airport for a look at how that could affect the already struggling travel
industry.
Ahead, words have consequences. Why Dominion Voting Systems is suing Trump ally Rudy Giuliani for more than $1 billion. That's next.
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ASHER: Returning to our top story, U.S. lawmakers are in session. In the next few hours, senators will be sworn in as jurors in the second
impeachment trial of former president Donald Trump.
House managers delivered the article of impeachment to the Senate Monday night and in about two weeks the trial will officially begin. President Joe
Biden has been speaking to CNN, vocalizing his support of the impeachment.
He says the impeachment trial, quote, "has to happen," but he does not believe there are enough votes to convict. Some are arguing that trying the
president after he's left office isn't even legal.
My next guest believes, quote, "It would defy common sense if the Senate were powerless to hold a former president accountable through impeachment
and trial."
CNN legal analyst Elie Honig joins us from New Jersey.
A lot of GOP senators are saying the trial isn't legal. It's not constitutional given that Donald Trump is not in office anymore.
What are your thoughts on that exactly?
ELIE HONIG, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: I disagree with that. We know that we can try a former president or former official, first all of, because it's
happened. In 1876, we had a Secretary of War who resigned, then was impeached, then months later was tried.
And it is really just a matter of common sense and logic. If you look at our Constitution, it gives us two potential punishments. One is removal
from office. Obviously, that no longer applies.
But second, the Senate can vote to permanently disqualify the person from ever holding federal office again. That's the remedy for something like
what happened here. It can't be a complete circumstance -- consequence- free, free-for-all in the last couple of days of the presidency. So this is the constitutional remedy for that.
ASHER: In terms of holding the former president accountable, when it comes to Donald Trump assembling his defense team and the trial happening in the
next two or so weeks, walk us through what the main evidence is against him and what the main defense is against him, especially when it comes to what
happened on January 6th.
HONIG: I don't think we'll see any surprises in this trial. The main evidence against Donald Trump is the video and the tweets and the public
statements that we've all been seeing since January 6th and before.
Donald Trump's call for his followers gather on the Ellipse January 6th, the rally right before the riot, the video of the riot itself and Trump's
comments praising the crowd after they tore the Capitol apart. That's the case against Donald Trump.
I think the defense will be partially that constitutional issue that we talked about before, this argument that you can't try a former official and
also they'll raise this First Amendment argument, saying, well, Donald Trump was just engaged in sort of fiery political rhetoric. He's allowed to
do that.
But there is a line. The First Amendment is not without limits. And I think that's where the argument is going to be.
ASHER: It's free speech but free speech with a responsibility. That's key.
When the president says you've got to fight like hell, you've got to fight like hell, otherwise you won't have a country anymore, can his defense
argue he didn't necessarily mean fight physically and didn't necessarily mean go into Congress and threaten Mike Pence's life?
HONIG: That's exactly what they'll argue. And I think the best comeback to that from the House impeachment managers, who essentially are prosecuting
this case, is, OK but look at what Donald Trump said immediately after the attack on the Capitol.
Right around 6:00 pm that day, a few hours after this attack happened, Donald Trump got on Twitter and said, "Remember this day forever," and he
called the people who went into the Capitol and tore the place apart, he called them "great patriots."
If I'm prosecuting this case, I argue to the jury, that shows you that they did exactly what he hoped, exactly what he intended. That goes far beyond
the line the First Amendment protects.
ASHER: So the mob that stormed the Capitol three or so weeks ago from now, a lot of those people who are facing charges, who are going to -- many of
them will, of course, face prison time.
[10:35:00]
ASHER: But can they argue, listen, the president told me to do it. I was only doing what the president of the United States asked me to do?
HONIG: I think we will see some of them try to argue that in their criminal cases. I do not think that holds up. I do not think it's a defense
in a criminal case to say, I was under the impression the president wanted me to destroy property, to assault a police officer, that kind of thing.
Also that defense, those public statements we've seen from rioters, is not going to help Donald Trump's impeachment defense at all. I expect to see in
the impeachment trial clips of those people saying and through their lawyers saying, we were just doing what we thought Donald Trump was asking
us to do.
That's going to hurt him in impeachment.
ASHER: Also other elements in terms of holding the likes of Josh Hawley accountable, Ted Cruz accountable for their role but also, aside from what
happened, we're seeing video of what happened January 6th.
There's the fact that prior to that, president Donald Trump called Brad Raffensperger in Georgia, saying, hey, can you find any extra votes for me?
What can you do for me?
That surely will play a major role in this as well.
HONIG: Yes, as well as the new revelations we found out the last couple of days, about president Trump's attempt to weaponize DOJ to pressure
officials in Georgia. That should all be in play as well.
If you look at the articles of impeachment the House drafted, it focuses primarily on what happened on January 6th. But also they drafted it smartly
because it also includes the leadup to that, the big lie, this effort to claim falsely that the election was stolen and to use that lie to sort of
fuel the mob. I think all of that is absolutely in play for impeachment.
ASHER: Elie Honig, thank you.
The man who played a key role in spinning Donald Trump's baseless conspiracy theories is also in legal trouble as well. Rudy Giuliani is
being sued for defamation. Dominion Voting Systems saying its reputation has suffered irreparable harm. The election tech company is seeking more
than $1 billion in damages and Giuliani isn't the only Trump ally facing possible legal action. CNN's Tom Foreman has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUDY GIULIANI, ADVISOR TO DONALD TRUMP: This Dominion company is a radical left company, one of the people there is a big supporter of Antifa.
TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For Dominion Voting Systems, the case against Rudy Giuliani comes from his own mouth.
GIULIANI: The company counting our vote with control over our vote is owned by two Venezuelans who were allies of Chavez.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Through dozens of falsehoods on television, radio and the internet.
GIULIANI: It is not made up.
FOREMAN (voice-over): The lawsuit says former President Donald Trump's lawyer knowingly pushed blatant lies about the company.
GIULIANI: One of the experts that has examined these crooked Dominion machines has absolutely what he believes is conclusive proof that in the
last 10 percent, 15 percent of the vote counted, the votes were deliberately changed.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Dominions $1.3 billion lawsuit against Giuliani follows a similar suit against attorney Sidney Powell, who also promoted
Trump's false claim the vote was rigged.
THOMAS CLARE, DEFENSE ATTORNEY, DOMINION VOTING SYSTEMS: People believed this lie. People believed the statements that were made by Giuliani, they
were motivated to take action in the real world.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Dominion says the deception spurred deep mistrust of the voting system could cost the company a fortune and triggered threats
against its employees. Giuliani says the massive suit is quite obviously intended to frighten people of faint heart. It is another act of
intimidation by the hate filled left-wing to wipe out and censor the exercise of free speech.
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: Dominion, nobody even knows who owns it. These machines are controlling our country. So, it was a
rigged election. It was really a sham and a shame.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Still, Trump and his supporters enjoyed a great deal of free speech when they were trashing Dominion. Again without a shred of
proof to back their false claims.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The biggest fraud is the Dominion machines.
FOREMAN (voice-over): So, Dominion attorneys say they are looking hard at FOX News, OAN, Newsmax, Sean Hannity, Lou Dobbs, Maria Bartiromo, Rush
Limbaugh, "The Epoch Times" and more as the company contemplates its next legal moves.
FOREMAN: Once more Dominion is hoping to learn through the process of discovery whether these attacks on the company were coordinated and at what
level. That could open up more targets for lawsuits and potentially make all that free speech a lot more costly -- Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: CONNECT THE WORLD will be back after a very short break.
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ASHER: Today marks one year since Kobe Bryant's untimely death, leaving his teammates, fans and family behind to grieve. And people are still
deeply feeling the loss. His former teammate, LeBron James, saying on Sunday that legends never die and he was exactly that. Don Riddell is with
me now.
You covered this story on air exactly a year ago. Not just the fact that Kobe Bryant died so young, which is extremely tragic, it's also how he died
that left everybody stunned.
DON RIDDELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was that awful, awful helicopter crash in which Kobe, his daughter, Gigi, and seven other people who were riding
alongside them all perished. Just an absolutely horrific incident.
And I've been doing this job a long time. I can remember many other stories that I've covered. But I don't think I can remember any in the kind of
visceral detail that I remember this one.
I can remember where I was, what people said. I can remember the looks on people's faces when they heard the news. It was just so absolutely
devastating. So much has happened in the world since then, January last year.
But now that we approach the one-year anniversary, it's so painful for so many people. Of course, it's going to be really, really hard for people in
the NBA today. Many players, former teammates, people that knew him and the fans, too, he was absolutely adored. And it's hard to believe, still, that
he's not here anymore.
ASHER: Yes, and, of course, let's not forget his wife, who lost both her husband and her daughter on the same day. Don, thank you so much. Sad
reminder. Our thoughts and prayers are for his family.
"WORLD SPORT" is up next. I'll be back at the top of the hour.
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