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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Biden Promotes Sweeping Big Government Agenda in Joint Speech; Sen. Scott Gives GOP Rebuttal, Defending Tighter Voting Laws; Federal Investigators Raid Rudy Giuliani's New York Home and Office; COVID Deaths, Hospitalizations Drop, Vaccine Rollout Hits Wall. Aired 5- 5:30a ET

Aired April 29, 2021 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:27]

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. We are live this morning at the White House, in India, Moscow and Beijing. This is EARLY START. I'm Laura Jarrett.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning. It's Thursday morning. I'm Christine Romans, April 29th. It is 5:00 a.m. exactly in New York.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH R. BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: After just 100 days, I can report to the nation, America is on the move again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: A government working for the people. In his first address to a joint session of Congress, President Biden pushing a sweeping agenda to reshape the U.S. economy to work for the middle class. The president called for higher taxes on the wealthy to help fund family leave, child care, tax credits, health care, preschool, college education and an infrastructure plan he says will put Americans back to work.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: American Jobs Plan is a blue collar blueprint to build America. That's what it is.

Good guys and women on Wall Street, but Wall Street didn't build this country. The middle class built the country and unions built the middle class.

We have to prove democracy still works, that our government still works and we can deliver for our people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: It was a historic night in other ways as well. For the very first time, the president flanked by two women at a joint address, the vice president and speaker of the House behind him there.

CNN's Jeremy Diamond is live at the White House for us this morning.

Jeremy, good morning to you.

Take us through the president's speech. What stood out to you?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, Laura, President Biden last night first of all starting off by touting the progress that he believes has been achieved under his presidency in his first 100 days, talking about the coronavirus pandemic, the speed of the rollout of vaccinations that has been achieved in this country where we now stand about 55 percent of adult Americans have now gotten their coronavirus vaccine and the president certainly not shying away from touting that success, even as he also talked about the fact that there is still a long road ahead.

But really what the president was doing last night beyond looking and touting what he has accomplished in his first 100 days, was laying out this sweeping, very, very ambitious agenda full of a trillion dollars of spending for the future.

The president talking about this need to build back better a theme of his presidential campaign that he has taken with him in office. The president talking in particular about this American families plan, a $1.8 trillion program to invest in American health care, child care, universal pre-K, all of it funded by increasing taxes on the wealthiest of Americans, and the president certainly making the case for that last night.

What was so important to note in the president's speech last night was the fact that the president when he was talking about these investments, which all together when you add up the coronavirus relief bill, the American Jobs Plan, which is that infrastructure and jobs proposal and his American Families Plan, this is nearly $6 trillion in spending that the president is talking about, but he says it's a necessity not only for what it can deliver for the United States here but also in terms of global competitiveness and the need to prove that democracy works.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: Can our democracy overcome the lies, anger, hate and fears that have pulled us apart? America's adversaries, the autocrats of the world are betting we can't and I promise you they're betting we can't. They believe we are too full of anger and division and rage. They look at the images of the mob that assaulted the Capitol as proof that the sun is setting on American democracy.

But they're wrong. You know it, I know it. But we have to prove them wrong.

(END VIDEO CLIP) DIAMOND: And there's no question there that the president hammering those lines home towards the end of his speech as he really tried to make this argument that, yes, he is talking about a bigger role for government, but he isn't doing it in a vacuum, he's doing it in the context of what is happening around the world and the rise of autocracies like China.

Now, look, finally, you noted, Laura, that a lot of things look different. First of all, there was the first woman vice president, the first speaker of the House sitting behind the president of the United States, the president noting that moment at the very top of the speech.

And there was also, of course, the coronavirus pandemic looming over it all, just 200 lawmakers allowed into the chamber, socially distanced, far fewer than the more than 1,000 that you typically see on big nights like this.

JARRETT: Yeah, Jeremy, in addition, the president covered a lot of other ground here.

[05:05:02]

He said the most lethal terrorist threat to the homeland is that terrorism from white supremacy. He reached tout to trans youth, he said he has their back as legislatures are passing laws to try to roll back their rights.

But some topics didn't get a lot of attention in the speech was light on climate change and very little about the situation, the crisis at the southern border.

So, take us inside. What are you hearing from sources about why some things made the cut and others didn't?

DIAMOND: Well, listen, this is always how state of the unions -- or address toss joint sessions of Congress like it was last night go. This is enormous hashing out behind the scenes in terms of what will ultimately make it in the speech and that will not.

This is prime real estate and, in fact, White House officials who work on different policy areas, they are always vying to get their issues front and center in one of these speeches. Even a mention of something, as he did when talking about trans youth, for example, can be momentous, can send a signal about the kinds of things that the president cares about. So there was certainly a lot of that going on behind the scenes.

And I also think it's notable to look at the other issues that the president was talking about in terms of his legislative agenda. The president was not only focused on these big multi-trillion dollar proposals -- of course, that is the top of his agenda list, but he was also talking about police reform, he was also talking about gun reform, issues that of course are a lot thornier, a lot more difficult to get through. But the president did express some optimism, for example, on the police reform front, saying that he knows that there are these bipartisan negotiations happening on Capitol Hill and he certainly hopes that they can pass that legislation in time for the anniversary of George Floyd's death on May 25th -- Laura.

JARRETT: All right. Jeremy Diamond at the White House for us -- thank you so much. Appreciate it.

ROMANS: Senator Tim Scott gave the Republican rebuttal. The only black Republican in the Senate, walking a tightrope between Trump's GOP and his own effort to seal a bipartisan deal for policing reform. Scott said the president promised to unite the nation but claimed that -- excuse me -- three months in, the president and his party are pulling Americans further and further apart, and Scott defended Republican efforts that make it harder to vote.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TIM SCOTT (R-SC): Hear me clearly. America is not a racist country and it's wrong to try to use our painful past to dishonestly shut down debates in the present. I'm an African-American who has voted in the South my entire life. I take voting rights personally. Republicans support making it easier to vote and harder to cheat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Senator Scott also tried to claim that COVID was already on the run to use his words when Biden came into office, crediting Operation Warp Speed and the Trump administration for flooding the country with safe and effective vaccines, to say nothing of the hundreds of thousands who have died. Suffice to say, Operation Warp Speed, of course, helped develop the vaccines but flooding the country with them -- well, that was the Biden administration.

ROMANS: All right. A major escalation in the federal investigation into Rudy Giuliani. Agents raided the former mayor's New York home and office Wednesday, part of the probe into his lobbying of foreign governments.

Executing a search warrant on an attorney in a case like this is rare and would have required authorization at the very highest levels of the Justice Department.

JARRETT: That's certainly true. A green light that didn't come until Giuliani's client, Donald Trump, and Attorney General Bill Barr were out of the picture.

Meantime, Giuliani faces legal trouble on a number of other fronts as well, including a civil lawsuit by Dominion Voting Systems, possibly charges in Georgia related to peddling lies about the election and, of course, his role in inciting Trump supporters who stormed the U.S. Capitol.

So, what's next for Trump's former attorney?

CNN's Paula Reid reports on this from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) PAULRA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good morning.

I actually spoke with an attorney for Mr. Giuliani who described for me exactly what was in this search warrant that was executed at his client's house on Wednesday. And in this search warrant, investigators confirmed that this is related to an investigation into possible foreign lobbying violations.

Now, if you work or you advocate on behalf of a foreign government, you have to file that with the Justice Department.

Now, we're also learning that Giuliani's electronic devices were seized by investigators and that the warrant specifically stated they were interested in communications he had with specific individuals, including a man named John Solomon. He is a columnist who wrote extensively about Ukraine in the months leading up to the election.

And again, incredibly unusual to serve this kind of warrant on a lawyer, especially one who has represented a former president of the United States. A significant turn in this ongoing investigation looking into whether Rudy Giuliani was lobbying on behalf of officials in Ukraine while also representing President Trump and also trying to pressure people in Ukraine to dig up dirt or announce an investigation into the Bidens.

We have actually learned that Rudy Giuliani was not the only lawyer who received a visit from investigators Wednesday. We learned that another lawyer who used to represent the former President Trump, Victoria Toensing, she also got a visit early Wednesday from federal investigators, they issued a warrant that we are told is also related to this New York foreign lobbying investigation and they seized her cellphone.

Now, a spokesman -- a spokesman for Ms. Toensing said she would have been happy to turn over any relevant documents, all they had to do is ask. The spokesman also said that Ms. Toensing is not a target of the investigation and that she was told that.

But, again, incredibly significant to serve warrants like this early in the morning on attorneys. There are usually concerns that if you -- that if you execute search warrants on attorneys, you could potentially be taking some sort of confidential client communications. So, this is something that absolutely would have had to have been approved at the highest levels of the Justice Department, likely by the deputy attorney general of the United States.

Until recently, until about seven or eight days ago, we had an acting deputy attorney general and Lisa Monaco was just confirmed, but it likely would have had to go to that level to execute these kinds of warrants in a case like this -- Christine, Laura.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: Just fascinating.

All right. Paula Reid, thank you so much for that. So, a major American city is on the verge of throwing out thousands of

COVID vaccines if they are not used by today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:15:59]

JARRETT: Last night, the president struck an optimistic note on COVID and the good news is deaths are down, significantly. The seven-day average has not been this low since last July. And hospitalizations usually a predictor of trouble to come, also ticking down nationwide.

But here's the thing, the vaccine rollout is hitting a wall. The weekly average of people getting shots is down more than 20 percent in two weeks. Meantime, some cities are now racing to get shots in arms before they have to throw the vaccine away.

EARLY START has the pandemic covered coast to coast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Brynn Gingras.

There is a strong push to get people vaccinated in Philadelphia as thousands of doses are set to expire. Health officials there are reminding people there is no wait, there are no lines, that you don't need health insurance and you also don't need an identification, and, oh, if you get the shots, you will be fully vaccinated by the summer.

Demand in Philadelphia has dropped, similar to the trend that we are seeing all across the country, but there is a race right now to get doses that are set to expire on Thursday into people's arms.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: I'm Martin Savidge in Atlanta.

Two of Atlanta's professional sports teams, the Braves and Atlanta United say they're returning to pre-pandemic seating levels next month. Starting May 7th, the Braves saying they will increase their fan capacity to 100 percent, or about 41,000 seats when they play the Philadelphia Phillies. Atlanta United says they're going to 100 percent of a typical soccer configuration at Mercedes-Benz Stadium starting May 15th with a match against Montreal. Both teams went to 50 percent capacity last week.

JACQUELINE HOWARD, CNN REPORTER: I'm Jacqueline Howard in Atlanta.

A new CDC study shows more evidence that the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines really do work. They cut the risk of being hospitalized for COVID-19 in the real world among older adults. Data showed that being fully vaccinated was tied to a 94 percent reduced risk of hospitalization and being partially vaccinated so only receiving the first dose of a vaccine was died to a 64 percent reduced risk of hospitalization.

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Alexandra Field in New York, where Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced the next step forwards easing restrictions. The state planning to lift the midnight curfew on restaurants and bars. That goes into effect next month, May 17th for outdoor dining, May 31st for indoor dining, and you can sit at a bar starting on May 3rd.

NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Nick Watt in Los Angeles where the doors of Disneyland in Anaheim are open again for the first time in more than a year. Closed of course back in march 2020 due to COVID-19.

A soft opening Tuesday, just cast members, that's what they call employees, and guests. Friday the park opens as does California Adventure almost for real, 25 percent capacity and open for now only to residents of California.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMANS: All right. Thank you to our reporters for those.

After the worst year since the Great Depression for Main Street, signs of an American come back. Economists forecast the economy grew 6.1 percent during the first quarter. Before the pandemic hit GDP grew an average of 2.5 percent per quarter. After the COVID collapse, the economy is now clearly recovering.

There is still a lot of work to do, though. The Federal Reserve left interest rates at near zero Wednesday and reiterated it is not worried about inflation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEROME POWELL, CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE: The economy is a long way from our goals and it is likely to take some time for substantial further progress to be achieved. Our guidance for interest rates and asset purchases ties the path of the federal funds rate and the size of the balance sheet to our employment and inflation goals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell there also said the economy cannot fully recover until people feel confident going back to activities involving crowds of people. The vaccine rollout, reopenings and stimulus have pushed confidence higher.

[05:20:03]

A CNN poll found a majority of Americans, 54 percent, now say economic conditions are good for the first time during the pandemic.

But the recovery has been uneven. Millions of families hurting financially and the jobs market still crawling out of a deep hole, still down about 8 million jobs in this COVID collapse, Laura.

JARRETT: Well, a jarring picture out of Russia this morning, the first public appearance of Alexey Navalny since his hunger strike. What he and his wife said to each other at court.

CNN is live in Moscow.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:25:02]

ROMANS: Disturbing new video just released by the Justice Department. It shows rioters spraying Capitol police officers including Brian Sicknick with pepper spray on January 6th. Sicknick is the officer pointed out by a green arrow which has previously been shown only in federal court. Now, Sicknick and other officers are trying to stop rioters from pulling metal barricades away from a police line.

JARRETT: You can see the arrows there.

After the spray is used, Sicknick is keeled over at one point, rubbing his face. Prosecutors have charged Julian Khater and George Tanios with multiple felonies in this case, but they haven't been charged with Sicknick's death, which is his death certificate says was caused by strokes. Though some medical experts say strokes can be brought on by stress like this riot. The two men have pleaded not guilty.

ROMANS: In North Carolina, protesters left disappointed after a judge ruled against the release of police body camera footage showing the moment they shot Andrew Brown Jr. Now, the judge will allow Brown's immediate family and one of their lawyers to watch, but the deputies' faces and badge numbers must be blurred.

JARRETT: The judge may release the video after 30 days, the plan is to reassess once the investigation moves further along. The family attorney claims the 20 seconds of video they did see proves brown was driving away from officers but the local district attorney disputing that claim saying brown made contact with the sheriff's deputies twice with his car.

ROMANS: One sheriff's deputy killed another wounded in a standoff near Boone, North Carolina. Officials say the deputies went to this home for a wellness check after the resident didn't show up for work or answer the phone. Now, the suspect has been barricaded inside occasionally firing in the direction of officers.

JARRETT: The Justice Department charging three white men with hate crimes in the death of Ahmaud Arbery, the man shot while jogging last year. The suspects Gregory McMichael, his son Travis McMichael and William "Roddie" Bryan were charged with interfering with Arbery's right to use a public street because he was black and one count of attempted kidnapping. The McMichaels also face a gun charge in the case. Arbery's mom said the indictment is one step closer to justice.

Well, this weekend, join our friend, W. Kamau Bell, for a new season of "UNITED SHADES OF AMERICA". This season, he travels the country, masked up and socially distant, to talk with people about COVID-19, Black Lives Matter and so much more, Sunday night at 10:00, only on CNN.

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