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Erin Burnett Outfront

Interview With Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan (R-GA); Source: Pro-Trump Attorney Who Pushed Election Fraud Now Under Investigation Over Whether He Voted Illegally; Republicans Direct Ire At Rep. Liz Cheney's Vote To Impeach Trump As QAnon-Aligned Rep. Appears To Get A Pass; House GOP Meeting Now, Could Vote Soon On Rep. Cheney; DOJ Announces New Charges For Proud Boys Over Insurrection; Dr. Fauci: U.S. Not Vaccinating People Fast Enough To Stay Ahead Of New Coronavirus Strains. Aired 7-8p ET

Aired February 03, 2021 - 19:00   ET

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

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: He became an unlikely celebrity and icon. He even was knighted by Queen Elizabeth. May he rest in peace and may his memory be a blessing.

"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.

ERIN BURNETT, CNN HOST: OUTFRONT next breaking news, a party in crisis. The House Republican Leader siding with QAnon, so far refusing to strip Marjorie Taylor Greene for two committee assignments, turning the table on Democrats accusing them of being divisive.

Plus. Republicans right now debating the fate of Republican Leader Liz Cheney because she voted with her conscience and voted to impeach Trump. One Republican lawmaker tonight, Republican lawmaker accusing her of aiding and comforting the enemy.

And President Biden says he will not tolerate family conflicts of interest. Does his brother, though, complicate things? Let's go OUTFRONT.

And good evening. I'm Erin Burnett.

OUTFRONT tonight the breaking news, House Republicans still meeting right now behind closed doors to debate the fate of Liz Cheney after she voted to impeach President Trump. Now, that meeting has now lasted more than two hours. But as her fate is up in the air, one thing the Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy has made clear already tonight is that he's picking a side, Marjorie Taylor Greene's side.

A side of conspiracy theories to fringe for fringe, a woman who just days ago said she still truly believes that the election was stolen and fraudulent. A QAnon supporter and yet McCarthy's words tonight, "Past comments from and endorsed by Marjorie Taylor Greene on school shootings, political violence and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories do not represent the values or beliefs of the House Republican Conference."

Well, that is clearly not true, because McCarthy's actions speak much louder than those words. He is siding with Greene. Nowhere in his statement does he mention pulling her from both of her committees. By the way, they're really PLUM committees, education and budget.

In a statement, he says her comments don't represent the values or beliefs of House Republicans. McCarthy's decision fails on many levels. First, he emphasizes that as a member of Congress, Greene must hold herself to 'higher standards' than she did as a regular citizen. Even though there is no standard by which a person who has said this should be on key committees and embraced by any legitimate political party.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): The so-called plane that crashed into the Pentagon, it's odd, there's never any evidence shown for a plane in the Pentagon.

There is an Islamic invasion into our government offices right now.

Kennedy getting killed in the plane crash, that's another one of those Clinton murders, right?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: OK. McCarthy then has another excuse and that is when he says, "Marjorie recognized," his word, she recognized that she has a responsibility to hold herself to a higher standard right now that she's an elected official. OK. Well, McCarthy even added, "Her past comments now have much greater meaning, Marjorie recognized this in our conversation. I hold her to her word as well as her actions going forward."

Well, even as McCarthy was putting out bad statement, Greene's words were still flying. She spoke to the Washington Examiner and said this, this is Marjorie Taylor Greene, "Now, we have Joe Biden in the White House and Nancy Pelosi at 80 million years old as speaker, and we've got a Senate that we don't control anymore, with, you know, Mr. Big Turtle in charge up there just losing gracefully, losing gracefully."

OK. Those are her words to a higher standard. She calls McConnell, a turtle, Pelosi, 80 million years old. This is a higher standard and an elected official. And, oh, she again condemned Republicans for accepting the results of the election, the whole losing gracefully thing. Kevin McCarthy is not even holding her to her word for even a few hours and he is not alone. Guess who is on his side? I mean, just guess for one quick second.

Lindsey Graham, what a shocker, today tweeting, "She is entitled to correct the record - if it needs to be corrected - and explain things that could have been taken out of context. The only way we will ever know is to allow her to speak on what she believed then and what she believes now about the matters of controversy."

Well, she spoke prolifically, and constantly and consistently about what she thought, so there's no question about that. But then she actually was given a chance to correct the record on the day of her meeting with McCarthy to decide her fate of whether she was going to be on those committees. Greene was actually given a chance by the most friendly interviewer she could find, former Trump official Sebastian Gorka.

He gave her the chance to apologize to clear the water to correct the record on all the things she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEBASTIAN GORKA, FORMER DEPUTY ASSISTANT TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: You have been accused of saying things about 9/11, the Pentagon attack, the school shootings that you're Qanon supporter. Before we get to what the left is trying to do, I want to give you an opportunity to address those accusations about being a conspiracy theorist here on America First.

GREENE: Absolutely. Thank you. I appreciate that. Well, you know what's happened, I'm one of those Americans that was supposed to never get elected to Congress.

[19:05:06]

The elites don't want me here. They don't like me, as a matter of fact, because I'm just absolutely normal. I'm just like you and every single other person that goes to work every single day crosses every single T, dots every single I, pays our taxes, follows the rules that is set up with our morally corrupt government.

The same government and the politicians that have put us over 30 or nearly $30 trillion in debt and left our borders wide open where our country is flooded with illegals, has murdered over 62 million babies in the womb with our tax dollars. I've never done drugs. I've never been arrested. The only thing that I've done is probably gotten a speeding ticket.

But you know what? Just like every single other person, yes, I have said things I shouldn't say at some time or another, but I don't think I have anything to apologize for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: Nothing to apologize for. That's a higher standard, right, Congressman McCarthy? She didn't explain or correct a single thing she said or that Gorka actually mentioned, sticking by the whole plane didn't go into the Pentagon thing. Her answer went on and on for two minutes.

By the way, if she crosses every single T and dots every single I, then she must stand by her prolific record of fringe conspiracy theories, including advocating political violence like hanging a former president. That's all the stuff she has said in the past and endorsed online.

Manu Raju is OUTFRONT live on Capitol Hill. Manu, what is the latest you're hearing from inside that GOP meeting which is now going on and on here?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Actually, for more than three hours they've been behind closed doors, they had a short break in between, but this meeting has not been focused on Marjorie Taylor Greene. It has been focused on Liz Cheney. That has been almost the exclusive topic, I am told, from multiple sources who have attended, who were in this meeting behind closed doors debating Liz Cheney's vote to impeach Donald Trump.

Cheney herself decided she is not going to apologize for her vote. She did explain why she took that position. She talked for about eight minutes and then it kicked off into a wide-ranging discussion, some members going after her pretty directly saying she does not represent the views of the House Republican Conference, others defending her.

It's still an open question about whether she will be subject to a vote tonight to get rid of her from that number three position. Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican Leader said privately to his members that he supports are in that spot as is Steve Scalise, the number two Republican, but McCarthy just told us moments ago, he doesn't know if there's going to be a vote and it's his decision to put that up for a vote.

Now, Marjorie Taylor Greene has addressed the conference, I'm told, from a Republican source who's in the room. She said that these past posts and her past statements do not reflect who she is. That was how she characterized her comments to her members just moments ago. But that appears to be enough to satisfy the likes of Kevin McCarthy and other Republicans who say that they will not take action to punish her.

McCarthy proposed moving her off the House Education Committee, which just come under withering criticism for her suggesting in the past the Parkland massacre in 2018 was somehow a staged event. He instead proposed putting her on the House of Budget Committee.

The House Democrats said no way they will not go for that. They believe she should be off of both committees. Sorry. McCarthy said she can move to the small business committee, but Hoyer wants her off all of our committees all together.

Nevertheless, Erin, this is going to go to the House floor tomorrow. There's going to be a vote. Democrats are going to push this through. Most Republicans are going to side with Marjorie Taylor Greene saying there's no right for the Democrats to choose the Republican committee assignments and go after comments made before she was an elected official, Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Manu, thank you very much.

I want to go now to former Republican Congressman Charlie Dent along with our own Gloria Borger. Congressman Dent, one congressman taking a break from the GOP meeting, telling CNN, "It's a meteor shower." Describing it as basically people for these past three hours in there, as we said, still in there behind closed doors firing off in all sorts of different directions. He says it's a mess in there. How bad is all of this?

CHARLIE DENT, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Erin, it's really quite bad. I'm certain in the House we had problems with members in our conference, oftentimes, they were forced to resign. The Speaker John Boehner, I saw him do it on a number of occasions. Paul Ryan too. They force people to resign, so it's quite bad.

Marjorie Taylor Greene will make it much more difficult for Republicans in swing and moderate districts to survive. It will be harder for Republicans to win a majority in 2022 with her around. She should be removed from the committees and kicked out of the Republican Conference. That's how they should deal with this. Everybody knows it.

But I think Kevin McCarthy is concerned that if he does reprimand or if he does remove her, well, then if Republicans were to capture the majority, he'd have a very difficult time winning the speaker's race because some of the harder core elements there would not support him. That's what this is about.

BURNETT: I mean, it's incredible, Gloria. Manu's reporting that Greene told the GOP in this closed-door meeting that her social media statements don't reflect who she is.

[19:10:01]

And obviously, there are plenty of them who are willing to buy that. I mean, yet obviously that's absurd, they're consistent to her comments. They're consistent.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Right.

BURNETT: The Clintons are behind somehow murdering JFK Jr., that the plane didn't go into the Pentagon, that she liked the statement about hanging President Obama, 9/11 didn't happen. I mean, it goes on and on. This is consistent. This is clearly who she is. Does anyone really buy her saying it isn't?

BORGER: Well, and why wouldn't they go after her point by point like you're just doing, do you still believe X? Do you still believe Y? Do you believe in Jewish space lasers or whatever it is?

I mean, you need to go point by point with this woman and I'm afraid that what we're really witnessing here is the complete moral disintegration of the Republican Party before our very eyes and in Leader McCarthy, a complete abdication of his leadership role.

I was talking to a Republican funder today who was shocked that McCarthy has let this get so out of hand and said, now, you're going to let Democrats vote on a tough vote for a lot of Republicans, they're going to have to vote to determine where a Republican can and cannot sit on a committee.

BURNETT: Right.

BORGER: And the only reason that is happening is because McCarthy has not led and this funder took it one-step further, he said that this could be, and I'm quoting him, "A potentially career-ending mistake."

BURNETT: I mean, it's incredible, Congressman, as you point out. Then, you put these Republicans in this position and in these swing districts, then did they just side with QAnon. I mean, to the point that Gloria was making, Congressman, McCarthy has tried to place the blame on Democrats. He said, well, I offered to move her to a different committee, Democrats wouldn't agree.

I do want to just point out when McCarthy stripped Steve King of his committee assignments, he took them all away. He didn't just go say, oh, I'll swap for a different one.

BORGER: Right.

BURNETT: He took them all away, because finally King supremacy somehow went too far. But not with Greene, he's justifying her comments. So this was before she was ever elected, he said tonight. Why is he essentially protecting her, Congressman?

DENT: I think he's really watching out for his flank. Remember, a few years ago when he wanted to elevate to speaker, he was denied largely by members of the Freedom Caucus and those in the hard right, they denied him. So I think what's happened is Kevin McCarthy, since then, has co-opted them or maybe co-opted them or maybe they have co-opted him, that is the problem now.

Now, he's kind of in a position where if he were to reprimand Taylor Greene, those folks would turn on him again. I think it's that simple. It's about becoming speaker. But the challenge for Kevin McCarthy is as long as Taylor Greene is around, she is toxic to the Republican brand, will make it more difficult for Republicans to win those swing and marginal seats back that would enable them to become the majority party.

So he's in a box right now, I think he should just simply do the right thing and he knows what the right thing is to do. And that's to get rid of her off the committees and to kick her out of the conference. This shouldn't be a hard decision. He's twisting in the wind and the longer he twists, the harder it's going to be on him and everybody else.

BURNETT: And Gloria, he's trying to - Congressman, you're saying he should just do the right thing.

DENT: Yes.

BURNETT: What he is doing, Gloria, of course, is trying to play the political machinations of how this may play out. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi put out a statement tonight and she - it involved mentioning Kevin McCarthy - she lists his political party as Q, not R, Q. And the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, they've started a $500,000 ad campaign, time the GOP to the fringe.

But the big question I have here is whether this is going to backfire on her? Is she playing into McCarthy's hands by making this political?

BORGER: Look, I think there's no other way to make it. I mean, this is a woman who is a conspiracy theorist, who has said a lot of deranged things. And you can, of course, expect the Democrats to say this because they're not kicking her off her committees and they're not kicking her out of Congress. This is going to hurt the Republican Party, I would argue, in the long run.

Because, as this funder said to me today, McCarthy super PAC, goodbye. The big funders are not going to be there. The moderate Republicans that Charlie Dent is talking about are going to be a very much an endangered species. And also hanging out there, one thing we haven't mentioned is, of course, Donald Trump.

McCarthy is trying to walk that line as well, because Trump has embraced her, he likes QAnon, he says, because they like him and so he doesn't want to get in the way of that because he wants Donald Trump to raise money for him and to be there on the campaign trail so he can become speaker. But ironically, after all of this, he might not become speaker even if they were to win the majority.

[19:15:02]

BURNETT: So Congressman, what next here, I mean, especially for Liz Cheney? The fate of Liz Cheney here is - we're three hours in and still up in the air.

DENT: Well, that's what's so sad about all of this. Liz Cheney is the one who stood up for principle and voted her conscience and all the conversation tonight apparently is mostly about her. Well, I think right now Republicans need to stand by Liz Cheney. I think many of them will. She's going to represent the future of the party at this rate.

BURNETT: All right. Thank you both very much. I appreciate it. Congressman Dent, Gloria Borger, thank you.

And I want to bring in now the Republican Lieutenant Governor Geoff Duncan of Georgia. And Lt. Gov. Duncan, look, you and I have spoken over the past months, you've talked about the need for a GOP 2.0. And yet, here we are, you are from the same state, obviously, as Congresswoman Greene. What do you think about what's going on in your party right now that McCarthy is backing her?

LT. GOV. GEOFF DUNCAN (R-GA): Well, I don't live in representative greens district, but I do have an opinion and my opinion is we are headed in the wrong direction. If we continue to elect folks that take her approach, we're going to continue to lose as Republicans, it's that simple. It's hard to watch.

I got to spend 10 weeks in a front row seat watching what conspiracy theories and misinformation does and quite honestly, it cost us two U.S. Senate seats here in the state of Georgia. And I can't imagine that anybody thinks it's a good idea to move the way she's moving through her actions.

BURNETT: And what I'm trying to understand and I know you're a parent as well and you and I've talked about that, the challenge that you felt with what Trump was doing and how he was behaving and explaining that to your boys.

You have Marjorie Taylor Greene coming out and saying that the real cancer for the Republican Party is that they lose gracefully. I was stunned by that. How do you get your head around this that you still have, obviously, the leadership in Washington willing to support and condone that sort of talk?

DUNCAN: Look, it's a sideshow. It distracts the folks who are trying to keep with us and the folks we're trying to attract. Look, I'm proud to be a Republican. I'm proud to be somebody that champions smaller government, lower taxes, national security, I'm proud of that.

But when we have sideshows, then we stop talking about the things that help us win and that's really what happened in the president's race. We got away from talking about the things that make us really strong. We got away from being empathetic and understanding those folks that that we don't maybe understand their challenges and we certainly forgot how to message.

BURNETT: And look, I understand you want to see Marjorie Taylor Greene as a sideshow. I guess the challenge that I'm asking you is it isn't a sideshow. You have the leader of the Republican Party in Congress backing her. You have Republicans in Congress who are unwilling to back Liz Cheney for voting her conscience.

This, unfortunately, isn't a sideshow. It seems to go to the core of the entire fate of your party, Governor.

DUNCAN: Yes. So, look, I'm here in Georgia, I'm not in Washington, D.C. And look, my job is to continue to put conservative policies on display for 11 million Georgians and try to convince them that our leadership style is the best strategy for them, their families, their businesses and their future. To me, that's the best message for Republicans. Let them find out what they're going to fight up in D.C.

But at the end of the day, we need strong leaders that are willing to be inclusive, that are willing to take on the big issues and prove our style of leadership works.

BURNETT: So let me ask you about development in Georgia. Actually, you obviously were front and center with the entire election, as you said that you believe Trump lost those Senate seats. You are in the vast majority and I don't know anyone who hasn't agree with you on that. Pro-Trump lawyer Lin Wood play the leading role, obviously, in pushing those baseless election conspiracy theories and election fraud allegations in Georgia. Our viewers are seeing him on the screen here.

He's now under investigation by Georgia Secretary of State over whether he voted illegally. A source is telling us Wood basically potentially incriminating himself, Lieutenant Governor, by telling a reporter I had been domiciled in South Carolina for several months after purchasing property in the State in Florida.

Lin Wood, I would say, denies wrongdoing saying, I've been a resident of the State of Georgia since 1955. He says he changed his residency to South Carolina yesterday. He said this on yesterday. He says this is harassment by the Georgia Secretary of State.

What do you make of this? He's the guy leading the charge saying there was election fraud in your state and he's now reportedly under investigation for voting illegally.

DUNCAN: Well, look just like every other incident that was brought to our attention during the 10 weeks, post November 3rd. If there's an illegal registration or he's done something wrong, then we've got the folks in place to investigate it. They are post certified, either attorney general, secretary of states, GBI whoever is the appropriate agency.

But the interesting thing, Erin, is once again we didn't lose this election because of the system. We lost, especially the runoff, because almost 400,000 people, Republicans in rural communities didn't show up to vote. The blame rests on their shoulders.

[19:20:05]

We need to show up at the polls and vote for Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue and it just didn't happen, so now we got to move forward. Now, we got to go fix the problems and we got to work hard to get our brand back out there.

BURNETT: So let me ask you about where the election goes, because as you just point out, there was no fraud, there was no nothing. Everything has been proven. You guys checked it. You audited it. Checked it three times, OK. So we all know it was a fair and free election in the State of Georgia. I'm talking about the presidential as was the runoff.

But let me ask you about this, though, because the Republicans in Georgia's legislature are basically working to push measures that would end automatic voter registration and place limits on no excuse absentee voting. So they would limit that, my understanding is, to voters over 75, people with disabilities, anyone who's required to be absent, so not allowing anyone to vote absentee.

Now, you just allowed everyone to do it and it was completely fine, and free, and fair, so why restrict it now?

DUNCAN: Yes. There's been a number of bills introduced, I think, on both sides of the aisle. And it's kind of standard post-election. There's obviously reforms and things that we learned, but certainly been a wide range of bills that have been introduced. But here's the problem, Erin, Republicans enter this with a credibility problem.

We're carrying the baggage of 10 weeks of misinformation of all types of conspiracy theories and so every committee room a Republican walks into to try to make their pitch, whether it's legitimate, whether it's something that's addressing a real problem, it's a struggle and I get it.

Certainly, we saw absentee ballots go from 230,000 in 2018 to 1.3 million in 2020. And so certainly, we're going to take a good look at how we did and how efficient was the system and I expect that to be a bipartisan look.

BURNETT: All right. Well, I appreciate your time, Lt. Gov. Duncan. Thanks very much. DUNCAN: Yes. Thanks, Erin.

BURNETT: And next, we're going to take you to a Republican stronghold for reaction after its Republican congressman voted to impeach President Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to vote him out. He's a Democrat in sheep's clothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: And the man known as QAnon shaman is getting organic food in jail while an accused Capitol rioter is now asking a judge if she can take a vacation to Mexico.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:25:55]

BURNETT: Breaking news, the fate of Liz Cheney, the number three Republican in the House hanging in the balance at this hour as a large and loud number of fellow House Republicans demand that she lose her leadership post after voting to impeach former President Trump.

One Trump ally comparing her vote to, quote, "Seeing your girlfriend in the opposing team stands." But Cheney says she will not apologize for her vote and she is not the only one in the hot seat for putting principle over party. Kyung Lah is OUTFRONT.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back in the bottom line NewsRadio 610 KONA Monday afternoon.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the bottom line on NewsRadio 610 KONA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR U.S. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): In the heart of Washington's fourth congressional district ...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to open up the phones.

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LAH (voice over): ... a conservative stronghold ...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We're very strongly behind President Trump.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): ... continues to react.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The votes from Rep. Dan Newhouse in favor of impeachment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to vote them out. He's a Democrat in sheep's clothing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): Still angry at their Congressman, Dan Newhouse, one of 10 Republicans in the House who voted to impeach Donald Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. DAN NEWHOUSE (R-WA): There was a domestic threat at the door of the Capitol and he did nothing to stop it. That is why with a heavy heart and clear resolve, I will vote yes on these articles of impeachment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): It's not echoes of that applause here in this agricultural swath of Central Washington State. Republican county leaders are calling on Newhouse to resign, he says he won't. In this district that the Congressman and Trump both won easily.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Betrayed is probably the word we heard the most from our listeners.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanks for the call. Appreciate it.

LAH (off-camera): And when you say majority, what does majority mean?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Probably, I would say, 85 percent of our listeners. There are a lot of voters, especially on the right that have developed a personal connection with President Trump unlike they have with any other politician.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: NewRadio 610 KONA, your name and where are you calling from?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): They're already turning to 2022.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll be voting for Brad Klippert.

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LAH (voice over): Washington State Representative Brad Klippert has already declared he's running, demonstrating with anti-abortion activists.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRAD KLIPPERT, (R) WASHINGTON HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: I'm Brad, running for Congress to the fourth congressional seat. Yes, ma'am, in 2022.

I'm running for the values and the principles and I believe in the values and the principles of growth and prosperity that took place during President Trump's presidency.

Love you, ladies. Thank you. Have a great day.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You too.

LAH (on camera): How did you respond when the Congressman voted to impeach the President?

CHARLES SCHWAB, WASHINGTON STATE REPUBLICAN: He lost my vote.

LAH: Why would he lose your support completely because of this one vote?

SCHWAB: Because he has joined that group that is trying to destroy our president.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He needs to be in touch with his people and I think that he failed to do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAH (voice over): Newhouse, a farmer and businessman from Sunnyside, Washington was popular before this vote.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I thought he was brave and did the absolute right thing to do.

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LAH (voice over): But even this supporter acknowledges in a place that remains firmly pro-Trump 2022 may not be kind.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's going to be tough over here for him again. Yes.

(END VIDEO CLIP) (END VIDEOTAPE)

LAH (on camera): Of course, there is a lot of time between now and November 2022. Supporters of Rep. Newhouse say that's a lot of votes many months in order for him to change the minds. But critics doubt that their sentiments and their support for Donald Trump will waver between now and then, Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Kyung, thank you very much. And I want to go now to our Chief Congressional Correspondent, Manu Raju, to bring him back here. And Ryan Lizza, Chief Washington Correspondent for Politico and Co-Author of Politico Playbook. OK, thanks to both.

BURNETT: So, Ryan, you look at what Congresswoman Cheney is now facing for her vote to impeach Trump ...

RYAN LIZZA, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Yes.

BURNETT: ... by the way, a vote for which on the facts you have many senators who very plainly acknowledged this is the right thing to do, gets to the vote, some people are more political about their decision. Congressman Newhouse, you see Kyung's reporting there, what's happening there. What does this say about anyone in this party who dares to go against the guy who lost the White House?

[19:30:00]

LIZZA: Yes. It says that after a very brief moment of reflection and introspection after January 6, the Republican Party changed its mind about dumping Donald Trump, right?

There was a moment for about a week to two weeks after January 6, there was a window that was open. You had Mitch McConnell quietly send out word that he might be okay with impeachment. You had people like Liz Cheney, a leader in the House, vote for impeachment and speak out forcefully about why she was doing it.

And again, McConnell publicly saying a mob was fed lies, and that the president had some responsibility inciting the attack on the capitol. And that window just slammed shut over the latter two or three weeks of January. I think, you know, if you talk to conservatives, they will tell you that the reason for that is the big tech de-platforming, their fears that Democrats are using impeachment and then the subsequent -- the coming trial to discredit anyone who ever supported Donald Trump, right?

So this backlash against people like Cheney and McConnell just completely overwhelmed that brief moment of, oh, wait a second, what have we created with this guy, with Trump.

BURNETT: Yeah.

So, you know, Manu, we talk about McConnell and you talk about the votes here that were cast in the House, Cheney and Newhouse, you asked Republican Congressman John Katko of New York. He also voted to impeach Trump. So, you asked did he regret the vote. And I quote, hell no.

There's something to be said for the fact they're not afraid, they're standing by their decisions, even if it means they're going to lose in two years.

RAJU: Yeah, and they could be worried about a primary challenge. They could certainly get that.

One congressman, Tom Rice, who's been censured by the South Carolina state party just told me earlier this evening he has no regrets for his vote. And he said that if he gets a primary challenge, so be it.

Liz Cheney already facing a primary challenge, saying she has not apologized for the vote, saying internally, saying that she supports actually having a vote in the conference tonight about her leadership, believing ultimately majority of the conference will get behind her.

But, Erin, this conference is as I reported earlier has been focused exclusively on her and not Marjorie Taylor Greene. But we are learning some more information about what was happening inside the room. She -- Marjorie Taylor Greene addressed her past conspiracy theories, suggesting that the donor (ph) fight who she is.

And I am told after she spoke, she did receive a round of applause from members of the room. Some stood up, gave her a standing ovation. I am told there have been defenders of hers also inside the room.

Even as there have been many defenders of Liz Cheney, critics as well, also defending Marjorie Taylor Greene, despite the outrage we heard after the revelations, outrage from Republicans and Democrats alike.

BURNETT: So, you just -- yeah.

RAJU: But a lot of defenders, too, Erin.

BURNETT: So, let me ask you, so what Manu just said there, Ryan, was fascinating, right? So, you're in this conference three hours. Liz Cheney, a career Republican, as Republican as it gets, a person who is so widely respected for her integrity and her ethics, right, and this meeting is about her.

And yet the person who gets the standing ovation is the one that says 9/11 was a conspiracy theory, Parkland was a false flag, Obama could be -- should be hung, and I could go on.

LIZZA: Yeah.

BURNETT: That's the person who got a standing ovation in the GOP meeting tonight?

LIZZA: We have come full circle since early to mid-January when everyone was looking at members like MTG as this is the problem for the Republican Party and looking at people like Liz Cheney saying, OK, finally, the Republican Party is reassessing itself to tonight when MTG gets a standing, I don't know if it was full standing ovation, gets applause, and Cheney is risking her political future. I mean, the fact, though, as Manu reports that Cheney is willing to be

subjected to a vote, you know, she's in leadership. She should be a good vote counter, that suggests --

BURNETT: She's confident.

LIZZA: -- she could skate by. But negative partisanship is a hell of a drug, Erin. You know, this glue that holds each party together, especially with the Republicans is whatever internal problems you have, the other party is far, far worse. And so, when they're going after one of their own, that is a powerful narcotic that keeps Republicans together.

And so, MTG has been raising hundreds of thousands of dollars off this. Other people rallying to her side because they see the media and the left attacking her. And to them, that's all -- that's the only thing that matters, that's the most important thing.

BURNETT: Just like they're sitting there and playing, kind of a minute by minute, minute by minute, election by election.

[19:35:06]

Wow, we hope the room doesn't burn. Thank you both very much.

And next, breaking news, chilling new details tonight about the alleged actions of some Proud Boys members before and during the deadly capitol insurrection.

Plus, Dr. Fauci's warning on vaccines tonight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BURNETT: Breaking news: At least nine members of the far-right Proud Boys now facing charges in connection to the insurrection on Capitol Hill. Two top members are facing seven new charges, including conspiring to stop Congress from certifying the election results. The indictment also accusing the pair of raising money online to fly to Washington, and describing the words murder the media on an entrance to the capitol.

In another complaint, the DOJ announcing that another top member of Proud Boys is facing charges for using social media to help organize the attack. That complaint saying he posted a video days before the riot with the caption let them remember the day they decided to make war with us.

OUTFRONT now, the former deputy director of the FBI, Andrew McCabe.

[19:40:00]

And I appreciate your time. So, you know, these are chilling new details about members of the Proud Boys, members plural on the day of the insurrection, and planning that led to that. Do you have any doubt this was a coordinated attack when you see these sorts of things? ANDREW MCCABE, CNN SENIOR LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: No question, Erin,

this was a coordinated attack at least among small groups of people, like-minded folks affiliated with the same organizations like Proud Boys, or the 3 Percenters, Oath Keepers. As the investigation deepens into the group, we're seeing the FBI uncover evidence of the coordination.

So, phone calls, communications, coordinating travel arrangements or funding. And those -- that's the sort of evidence that helps you build a conspiracy case which is clearly what they're looking for here.

BURNETT: So, Canada today announced it is going to label Proud Boys a terror group. Now, the White House has said it's going to wait for its former national security team to finish review of Proud Boys before they commit to labeling it a terror group.

I know that there's legal things that have to happen for that to occur, but should the White House push the issue?

MCCABE: They should absolutely push this issue, and good for the Canadians for doing so in their own backyard.

Look, this has been a persistent threat for years. It is clearly on the upswing right now. We're seeing an elevation and activity and violation from these groups and we have to do something about it.

Unfortunately, we don't have the legal structure to take the steps we need in this country. That's why it is important for Congress to finally take up, and enact legislation making domestic terrorism a federal crime. It is defined in federal law right now, but it is -- there are no criminal penalties associated with domestic terrorism.

BURNETT: Which is pretty incredible when you think about it. It's just -- I guess the relic of so many years of seeing that as something that came from outside the country.

Tonight, we learned in all of the charges, though, Andrew, that a federal judge ruled the so-called QAnon shaman that stormed the capitol, his real name is Jacob Chansley, should be given organic food after an apparent hunger strike where claimed non-organic food was against his religion and sickened him. So that happened.

And then this woman accused of taking part in the riot asking a judge to let her go to Mexico for a retreat. Let me play the exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We didn't knock down any statues. We didn't vandalize anything. But we did, we did as I say that, we did breakdown the Nancy Pelosi office door and somebody stole her gavel. I was here today on January 6 when the new revolution started at the capitol, so yeah. I'm proud of everything that I was part of today. And I'll be proud of everything I'm part of at the next one.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BURNETT: I mean, it is pretty stunning, right? That's her speaking to a camera about what she did. We don't know if the judge has approved her to go to Mexico, but what do you make of this behavior?

MCCABE: Well, you know, these kind of statements are an investigator's dream. I mean, every time these people their mouths on that day and recorded it, they said things that are going to cause bigger problems in upcoming criminal cases.

As for the judge's decision with her request, it's a bit ridiculous when you're currently charged with a federal crime to try to leave the country. The standard for granting someone bail is if they present or denying bail actually is if they present a danger to the community or risk of flight.

You can easily make the argument that someone who attacked the capitol presents danger to the community, now is trying to fly outside the country. So, it'd be interesting to see how that decision goes.

BURNETT: Right. I mean, I guess it would be shocking if she was allowed, it is just amazing these people make it such a joke.

All right. Well, I appreciate your time. Thank you so much, Andrew McCabe.

MCCABE: Thanks, Erin.

BURNETT: And next, more experts tonight saying it is time to get as many people vaccinated as possible, even if that means delaying second doses for some people. Is that the right thing to do?

Plus, business dealings of Joe Biden's brother, creating a new headache for President Biden.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:47:59]

BURNETT: Tonight, the CDC increasing its death toll projection, saying there could be 84,000 deaths in the United States by the end of the month as new coronavirus variants spread across the country. It is making the race to get vaccinated more urgent. With just 2 percent of the U.S. population fully vaccinated at this point.

OUTFRONT now, Dr. Leana Wen. She is the former Baltimore City health commissioner, has been forefront in all these issues.

And, Dr. Wen, I'm really glad to have you. So, we know 18 states still haven't expanded vaccinations to people 65 and older. This is according to "New York Times."

We are hearing, you know, more people like the infectious disease expert, Dr. Michael Osterholm, saying it's time to call an audible, and just get as many people as we can, one dose, don't hold anything back. What is the downside of straying from the two dose schedule that we

know works with Pfizer and Moderna in order to get more people covered?

DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: There is a very big down side here, Erin. We would not be following the science. Delaying the first dose is not how the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were studied. By the way, this is very different from the Johnson & Johnson vaccination is one dose versus two-dose, and if you actually have those data, and you can make a decision.

So, for example, if you find one dose will give you 70 percent protection, but two doses give you say 90 percent protection, you could as society say it's better to give twice the number of people, 70 percent protection rather than half the number in 90 percent. That's not what we have for Pfizer and Moderna.

Look, I see patients, talk to them every day about vaccine concerns.

BURNETT: Yeah.

WEN: The number one concern they have is about speed. And they say -- they just got approved too quickly. I tell them, no shortcuts were taken on science. If we take shortcuts now, it could erode confidence in vaccines.

BURNETT: Yeah, which, of course, is a big question here, and also so many questions about the vaccines and how they will perform against the variants, as the variants continue to become more variant.

You know, Dr. Fauci was asked today whether the United States is doing enough to even get ahead of these highly transmissible variants.

[19:50:05]

And here is what he said, Doctor.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: We're not because the situation is we still have a demand that far exceeds the supply.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BURNETT: It was pretty sobering there that he was saying right now, at the current rate, we are losing the race against these variants. Do you agree?

WEN: I do. The CDC is projecting by March, the variant first found in the U.K., B117, could be dominant here in the U.S. And so, we really need to be doing everything we can to both expedite rollout of the vaccines but also to double down on the measures that we know will be effective in reducing spread, and that includes very critically not only masking but also avoiding indoor gatherings. BURNETT: So, U.K. researchers found the vaccine from Oxford and

AstraZeneca, and, obviously, this is separate from Pfizer, Moderna and J&J, right? This is a fourth one appears to substantially reduce transmission of the virus.

Now, obviously, Dr. Wen, right now we only knew the vaccines prevented serious illness in the original variant, right? There is a lot unknown about the mutants and each vaccine, but if the vaccines are effective at stopping transmission, how much does that change things do you think?

WEN: It's a total game changer because at the moment, what we know is that the vaccines will reduce severe illness and hospitalization and death and that's really important, but we don't know whether the vaccine will reduce transmission and maybe you can be asymptomatic carrier and you can spread it to your loved ones.

So, you can imagine, if it turns out that you can actually reduce transmission, it will change the way vaccinated people interact with, let's say their grandkids if they are vaccinated and I think it could also lead us to end the pandemic a lot sooner.

BURNETT: Dr. Wen, how concerned are you about variants? We know there is now several of them. We know they are much more transmissible and some may be more deadly. How concerned are you about the pace at which the virus is mutating and variants we don't yet know about?

WEN: It's the ladder part that I'm the most concerned about because there could be home grown variants right here in the U.S. that we just don't know, that could be contagious, they could also be even more lethal. We just know about them because of the lack of surveillance.

And so, the best we can do now is really double down on all those public health measures and just critical to avoid indoor gatherings even with our extended family and friends.

BURNETT: All right. Dr. Wen, thank you very much. I appreciate your time tonight.

WEN: Thank you.

BURNETT: And next, Biden says family conflicts of interest will not be tolerated in his administration. But the president's brother already complicating that promise. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[19:56:37]

BURNETT: Tonight, as President Biden tries to draw a clear line between his family and Oval Office, his brother Frank has used his presidential ties in an ad for his law firm.

Sunlen Serfaty is OUTFRONT.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORREPONDENT (voice-over): As President Biden talks tough.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Without a hint of scandal.

SERFATY: Promising that family conflicts of interest will not be tolerated in his White House.

BIDEN: No in our family, extended family is going to be involved in any government undertaking or foreign policy.

SERFATY: New questions are rising about the president's brother, Frank Biden's job at this law firm in Boca Rotan, Florida --

FRANK BIDEN, JOE BIDEN'S BROTHER: I'm Frank Biden.

SERFATY: -- muddying the waters on the president's vow.

BIDEN: I'm available for consultation with Attorney Teddy Berman.

SERFATY: Frank Biden, hired by the Berman Law Group in 2018, is listed as part of the executive leadership team as senior advisor, non- attorney. The law firm regularly totes their ties to the president, featuring Frank and his family connections prominently on their website and promotional materials and on social media, promising clients, quote, the expertise of a high-profile government relations consulting team led by Francis Frank Biden, brother of former Vice President Joe Biden.

In 2020, the firm filed these two class-action lawsuits against China involving the COVID outbreak. In both press releases announcing the lawsuits, Biden's brotherhood with the president was featured up high, even as the firm confirm in a statement to CNN that Biden was not even involved in the cases.

And on Inauguration Day, as Frank appeared at the Capitol as his brother was being sworn in, the firm placed this two-page ad in a local Florida newspaper, emphasizing the shared values between the two Biden brothers, specifically mentioning the firm's lawsuit against sugarcane growers, quote, filed against the backdrop of incoming President Joseph Biden Jr.'s commitment to environmental and social justice.

In a statement to CNN, the Berman Group says we have not spoken to federal of government officials about our cases. There have been no discussions between the firm including Frank Biden with President Biden, the campaign transition or administration about the law firm or cases including China relaters matters nor will there be.

The White House in a statement to CNN says that the president has pledged an absolute wall with any family member's private business interest. Any implication of the contrary is flatly untrue and unsupported by facts.

PRESIDENT BIDEN: The foul line is 15 feet away from the basket. Never get me closer than 17 feet because it really is a matter of the public trust.

SERFATY: President Biden trying to make a hard break with how things were done under Trump.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT: I want to thank my daughter Ivanka who's with us today.

SERFATY: Where the lines between family and government were blurred completely.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BURNETT: I mean, completely blurred there. But, Sunlen, the Biden White House is trying to make it clear, they're not going to do that. They're going to operate differently than the Trump White House.

So, what are they doing specifically to draw the line between family and the Oval Office?

SERFATY: Yeah, Erin, the White House already has an internal policy in place right now that involves the White House counsel's office as well as representation from the families here and they will go over questions or any concerns over conflicts of interest as they arise. Additionally, their policy now prohibits family members from working or serving on the board of any majority foreign owned companies.

But to this specific incident involving the Vice President's -- Biden's brother, they have not said if they have specifically talked to Frank Biden about this or his law firm. But, Erin, they are emphasizing in a statement to CNN tonight that the president's name should not be used in connection to any commercial activities or to suggest his endorsement or support -- Erin.

BURNETT: All right. Sunlen, thank you very much.

And thanks very much to all of you.

Anderson starts now.