Return to Transcripts main page

Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

General: Bad Possible Outcomes As U.S. Pulls Out Of Afghanistan; North Korean Threatens U.S. With "Very Grave Situation"; Concerns Grow Over How Olympics Will Protect Athletes And Volunteers. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired May 03, 2021 - 05:30   ET

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

[05:30:00]

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: Los Angeles County reported no new COVID fatalities on Sunday. That could be an undercount due to a reporting delays. But health experts are confident the U.S. is locking in gains from its vaccine rollout.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SCOTT GOTTLIEB, FORMER COMMISSIONER, FOOD & DRUG ADMINISTRATION: This has been a monumental achievement rolling out this vaccine and getting that many Americans vaccinated and it's going to continue. We'll continue to chip away it. The rate of vaccination is going to slow in the coming weeks but we'll continue to pick up more people as we get into the summer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: All of that said, vaccination rates are clearly slowing. Essentially, the unvaccinated are holding the vaccinated hostage from a real return to normal. That's why some health experts say more incentives are needed to get across the line, and the Biden administration is being too cautious when it comes to masks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: If you have received both doses of an mRNA vaccine or you're a couple of weeks out from the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, you are very well immune and you no longer need masks in public. You can go into places without masks.

And it's time for the CDC to start embracing this kind of bifurcated strategy and perhaps giving the unvaccinated a hint of what life can be like if they become vaccinated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Still, some cities are choosing the more cautious approach. In Brooklyn, Massachusetts they've decided to overrule the CDC and keep their outdoor mask mandate in place.

EARLY START has the pandemic covered coast-to-coast.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Hi, I'm Polo Sandoval in New York.

Health experts are stressing how important it is for people to return for their second COVID-19 vaccine dose. This comes after the CDC reported nearly eight percent out of the tens of millions of people who have received at least one shot have not returned to get their second.

Pfizer and Moderna vaccines require two doses to ensure maximum protection against the virus. Remember, there's only one authorized single-dose vaccine and that's Johnson & Johnson's.

Researchers still saying, though, more analysis has to be done to find out what's behind these delayed or missed second doses. Is it access or is it vaccine hesitancy?

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Nick Watt in Anaheim, California.

One California landmark, Disneyland, is now open, mostly -- but another California landmark will be closed, they say, by the end of May. It's the mass vaccination site in the parking lot at Dodger Stadium, all part of a plan to move vaccinations from these big sites to smaller mobile pop-up sites where appointments may not even be necessary.

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Alexandra Field in New York.

The city is now taking its next steps toward reopening. As of May seventh, indoor dining capacity limits move up to 75 percent. The same threshold applies on the same date for personal services businesses like barbershops and hair salons. And just a week later, gyms get the green light to go to 50 percent capacity.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Thanks to all of our correspondents for those reports.

Well, with all of these reopenings, a glimmer of hope for the cruise industry this morning. Crowds of people welcomed two Carnival ships, the Breeze and the Vista, as they returned to the Port of Galveston, Texas on Sunday. The last cruise ships pulled out of Galveston more than a year ago as the pandemic shut down cruising worldwide.

The Breeze and the Vista won't be taking passengers anywhere soon, though. They'll undergo maintenance while the cruise industry awaits CDC guidance on how to get back on the water.

ROMANS: All right, jobs, jobs, jobs -- the promise of President Biden's climate change agenda -- but what will these jobs look like? Well, investments to fight climate change will inevitably lead to more new jobs. Existing jobs, like in the fossil fuel industry, will start to trickle away. But many new jobs will require workers with experience in the old industries.

The jobs are built into Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure plan, including a $16 billion investment to close unused oil and gas wells and reclaim abandoned mines -- coal mines. The White House says that program alone will put hundreds of thousands of people to work in union jobs. Climate-focused jobs will span several industries.

During his speech to Congress, Biden said his plan would put engineers and construction workers to work building more energy-efficient buildings and homes. There might also be roles like drone pilot, electric vehicle mechanics, wind turbine mechanic, and smart window installer.

Climate change and job creation go hand-in-hand for the president. Now he just has to get support for that plan.

JARRETT: Bad possible outcomes. That message from a top American general could be a gross understatement about what's in store for Afghanistan as the U.S. begins to withdraw its troops.

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has reported extensively inside Afghanistan for years. He is live this morning in London for us.

Nick, al Qaeda promising a war on all fronts against the U.S. as it pulls out of Afghanistan. So where do things go from here?

NICK PATON WALSH, INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Yes, and you would expect al Qaeda to come up with that sort of rhetoric at a key time like this.

[05:35:00]

But make no mistake, there is an exceptionally dangerous situation unfolding in Afghanistan now as witnessed over the weekend where a key base to the south of Kabul, in Ghazni, was briefly, it seems, overrun -- taken from the Afghan army by the Taliban.

This is not something extraordinary or new. It's been occurring on and off over the past year. Cities have fallen, briefly, to the Taliban as well. But the Afghan government has always had U.S. airpower and assistance on their backs to kick the Taliban out again. That's going to be less the case and eventually, not at all the case, it seems, in the months ahead. That American withdrawal has started and it will begin to accelerate.

A key base in Helmand, a vital province in the south which the Taliban had a lot of sway over -- well, a major base there known as Camp Leatherneck was handed over to the Afghan army in its entirety finally at the weekend as well. You'll remember Camp Leatherneck, possibly, where many Marines served and some, sadly, lost their lives on the outskirts as well. And it used to be called Camp Bastion back when the British were there. This long history slowly being passed to the Afghans. And you heard Gen. Mark Milley there. His comments almost like an outside observer, frankly, of the U.S. now, saying well, it could go either way, frankly. It's likely to go the Taliban's way it seems in the months ahead. They've been preparing for this moment for a substantial amount of time.

Yes, Afghan Security Forces have held cities and they probably will continue to do so. But their strength in the countryside on the roads connecting those cities will slowly get eroded. It's, frankly, inevitable. It's something the U.S. accepted was going to happen.

But the real question I think is the peace strategy -- that all of this was essentially laid upon by the United States. They thought they'd see the Taliban in Istanbul. Right now, talking about peace -- talking about a diplomatic solution, the Taliban has simply said no to that and don't look like they're about to change their minds. Some say maybe they will perhaps in the months ahead as the idea of possibly sharing government in Afghanistan becomes more real.

But at the end of the day, we are likely to see a very violent summer in Afghanistan as the inevitable moment for the insurgency comes to the fore and they begin to think what territory they can permanently hold on to.

Back to you.

JARRETT: All right, Nick. Great to get your analysis on all of this, as usual.

ROMANS: All right, to North Korea now threatening the United States with a very grave situation, claiming that President Biden, quote, "made a big blunder" in a recent speech by calling the Kim regime a security threat. Last week, Mr. Biden told Congress he will work with allies to address the North Korea problem through diplomacy and deterrence.

Will Ripley has reported extensively on North Korea and from North Korea. He joins me this morning from Hong Kong. Hi, Will.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Christine.

It is a sad moment when we can now go back and see this cycle of history repeating itself on the Korean Peninsula.

President Biden making a claim that the United States has made for years that their nuclear program is a security threat. North Korea putting out this statement saying that it's insulting and it's hostile. Saying the same thing about the State Department, calling them a totalitarian repressive regime, something they've also been saying for years.

And North Korea also warning South Korea over propaganda leaflets put in balloons that activists send up into the north -- something that's been happening for years.

There was one moment when it seemed like it was possible to break all of this madness and that was in Hanoi when President Trump and his team went in and Kim Jong Un and his team offered a small step towards denuclearization and not so small from the North Korean perspective. They were going to start to dismantle their known nuclear facility. They obviously had other nuclear facilities.

President Trump wanted a grand gesture. He wanted to go big or go home. And when he went home early and that summit collapsed, and Kim Jong Un was humiliated in front of his own government, in front of his own people -- he had to get back on this train and go home without a deal -- that spelled the end of diplomacy in our -- perhaps in our lifetime between the U.S. and North Korea happening in any sort of productive way.

Because now, Pyongyang has made it very clear the U.S. is not their priority, South Korea is not their priority.

And they might very well try to drum up some drama ahead of President Biden and President Moon's summit at the White House later this month. Because things are going so well with China right now, Christine, Kim Jong Un doesn't really need to work with the U.S. and South Korea, which means that even though President Biden's North Korea policy, which is very practical -- it talks about actual negotiation step-by- step, give and take -- it's very unlikely, a lot of analysts say, it will ever gain any traction in this current climate.

ROMANS: All right, Will Ripley for us with all of that great analysis and breakdown. Thank you, Will -- Laura.

JARRETT: This morning, Secretary of State Tony Blinken is in the United Kingdom to meet with G7 leaders. The number one issue, the growing threat from China on several fronts, not to mention its human rights abuses.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: It is the one country in the world that has the military, economic, diplomatic capacity to undermine or challenge the rules-based order that we care so much about and are determined to defend.

[05:40:06]

Our purpose is not to contain China, to hold it back, to keep it down. It is to uphold this rules-based order that China is posing a challenge to. Anyone who poses a challenge to that order, we're going to stand up and defend it.

We don't have the luxury of not dealing with China. There are real complexities to the relationship, whether it's the adversarial piece, whether it's the competitive piece, whether it's the cooperative piece.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Nic Robertson joins us live from 10 Downing Street in London. Nic, nice to see you. So what are you watching for today? NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You know, I think that message and how it's articulated on exactly what the United States gets it allies and partners to sign up to here. We've heard the rhetoric from the Biden administration, both from the president and the Secretary of State, talking about how the United States will work with its allies this G7.

It's not just the G7 nations here -- United States, Canada, Japan, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy -- there are special invitees along -- Australia, India, South Korea. You also have invited here the current chair of ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations here.

This is a G7 that has a big Indo-Pacific add-on, and the entire reason for that add-on of all those diplomats here -- we have Secretary of State Blinken meeting this morning -- already met with the Japanese foreign minister and meets with the South Korean foreign minister. Meets with the foreign minister from Brunei as well this morning before he meets with the British foreign secretary.

That heavy focus at the G7 where there's issues about COVID, about climate change, and a drive to enable women around the world to push to get education to 40 million more girls around the world. Really, when you look at the diplomatic lineup you understand that this is all about China. This is all about finding commonality on preventing human rights violations, on the international rules-based order -- the things we heard the Secretary of State talking about there.

So what am I looking for? What is the language that defines how that's going to happen and what do these nations sign up for? There's been a lot of diplomatic footwork on this already this year but let's see some concrete wording and concrete results.

JARRETT: Yes. Well, certainly, a lot on the agenda. Nic, thanks to much -- appreciate it.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:46:47]

JARRETT: This morning, a huge cleanup effort across Mississippi after a series of tornadoes swept through the state overnight. The National Weather Service confirmed three tornadoes. You can see damaged buildings, littered roads, and downed power lines. Residents warned to stay home so crews can assess the damage. As of now, no deaths reported.

ROMANS: Four people are now dead after a suspected smuggling boat overturned off the coast of San Diego. Nearly two dozen people sent to hospitals. The chief lifeguard for the city says it appears the boat hit a reef and broke apart, throwing 30 people into the water. Officials say the person believed to be operating that smuggling boat is in custody. JARRETT: An Oregon state lawmaker accused of opening a door for

protesters to pour into the State Capitol Building is now facing criminal charges. Surveillance video shows Republican Rep. Mike Nearman leaving through that door there -- it was locked -- as lawmakers inside were debating coronavirus health restrictions. Well, someone -- a rioter was able to grab the door before it locked again as angry rioters then faced off with police.

Nearman has now been charged with first-degree official misconduct and second-degree criminal trespass. He's scheduled to be arraigned next week.

ROMANS: A former Arizona lawmaker who attended the U.S. Capitol riot has been spotted counting ballots in the ongoing Arizona audit. Former representative Anthony Kern is a big advocate of the baseless "Stop the Steal" movement. Before losing his reelection bid, he signed a joint resolution with other Republican state legislatures -- legislators, rather, trying to invalidate Arizona's election results.

Cindy McCain, the widow of Republican Sen. John McCain, calls the Arizona election audit ludicrous.

JARRETT: Today at noon, family and friends of Andrew Brown, Jr. will say their final goodbyes at a funeral service. The families of George Floyd and Eric Garner expected to attend as well.

Brown's family and community members once again called for the full video of Brown's death to be released. His aunt asked what's the point of having taxpayers pay for body cameras if the video is not being seen. North Carolina law says body camera footage cannot be released without a court order.

ROMANS: Caitlyn Jenner announcing she opposes transgender girls participating in girls' sports. She calls it a question of fairness. The former Olympian and reality T.V. star announced her transition in 2015. She plans to challenge Gov. Gavin Newsom in the state's expected recall election this year.

Thirty-four states are considering banning transgender girls from playing on girls' sports team.

JARRETT: Now to his heart-stopping scene in Maryland. An infant ejected from a vehicle, teetering over a guardrail, and a Good Samaritan jumping in to save it. Witnesses are calling the man who rescued the infant the real hero. He says he was just in the right place at the right time. Oh, look at that.

ROMANS: Terrifying, all right.

Let's look at markets around the world right now to start the new trading month. You can see Asian shares on the first day of business closed lower. Europe has opened narrowly mixed. And on Wall Street, stock index futures this hour are leaning higher.

Look, we know the U.S. economy is making a comeback and we're expecting to see more evidence of that in the April jobs report -- that's Friday. Economists predict the U.S. economy added back 925,000 jobs and the jobless rate expected to fall to 5.8 percent.

[05:50:07]

Stocks are up double-digits or pretty close to it for this year. There's an old saying though on Wall Street -- sell in May and go away. That's because historically, gains tend to be pretty weak from May through October.

Since 1946, the S&P 500 has recorded an average gain of just 1.6 percent during that time. Of course, last year, it was a really strong period -- so we'll see.

The economy reopening means people are starting to hit the road again and that means higher prices at the pump. Analysts say drivers can expect the highest summer gas prices since 2018. California has already crossed $4.00 a gallon; the other states nearing $3.00.

Many gas stations expected to run out of gas -- get this -- thanks to a shortage of tanker truck drivers.

JARRETT: There is growing resolve but also growing concern about the Summer Olympics. A top medical official says it's time to consider the potential strain the Olympics will have on Japan's health system. Concerns also growing about the public, the athletes, and the 78,000 volunteers.

CNN's Blake Essig is live in Tokyo with more on this. Blake, so how are officials going to balance all of these competing concerns?

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well look, Laura, the Summer Olympic Games remain extremely unpopular with people here in Japan, and a big reason is the concern for the health and safety of the people who live here. Now, that concern has been amplified by reports that six people recently involved with the torch relay event tested positive for the virus.

Now, despite that, over the weekend, Japanese Olympic officials have once again said organizers are not considering canceling the games, pointing to the COVID-19 countermeasures highlighted in the latest edition of the Tokyo 2020 playbooks. Now, for the roughly 70,000 volunteers expected to participate, those countermeasures essentially include two masks, hand sanitizer, and a -- and a request to socially distance.

But with less than three months to go before the scheduled event is supposed to start, cases nationwide are on the rise, largely driven by variants. Tokyo and several other prefectures are under a third state of emergency order. In Osaka, available hospital beds are nearly filled to capacity. And on Sunday, the country is set -- set a new record for the most COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms.

Now, medical experts, including the government's chief medical adviser, are already expressing concern for Japan's strained medical system. To make matters worse, the Japanese government is trying to secure 30 designated hospitals for infected athletes. One infectious disease specialist that we spoke with today said the

government doesn't understand the situation at all. He called such an idea unthinkable. He went on to ask the question are the Olympic Games worth sacrificing the medical sector and citizens. His answer, an emphatic no, going on to say that the Olympics should be canceled -- Laura.

JARRETT: Well, just a couple of months away. We will see what happens. Blake, thank you so much.

ROMANS: All right, 52 minutes past the hour.

These are not the people expected to take the field for Manchester United. Frustration with the team's American owners prompting a protest from fans that forced the delay of a marquee matchup with Liverpool.

CNN's Alex Thomas is live in London. What happened here, Alex?

ALEX THOMAS, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I mean, Manchester United against Liverpool being called off in England's Premier League is like canceling the Yankees v. the Red Sox or the Celtics v. the Lakers. Astonishing stuff -- a game that would have been watched by millions across the world. This is the most successful soccer product in terms of one country's domestic league.

Fans breaking into Manchester United Stadium, Old Trafford, a few hours before kickoff. It's nicknamed the theater of dreams but this quickly turned into a nightmare as fans threw flares. They caused damage, breaking seats, and attacking broadcasters who were in the stadium to broadcast about the game across the globe.

They were chanting "We want Glazers out" in reference to the ownership of Manchester United, the Glazer family which, of course, owns the NFL team the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They bought United in 2005 in a controversial leverage takeover worth more than $1 billion and saddled the club with billions of dollars of debt.

And they're also a leading protagonist and plan to form a breakaway super league, which died a death 48 hours after being announced -- such was the huge uproar and opposition to it. Soccer fans want real structural changes to the sport. That's unlikely to happen anytime soon.

On Sunday, even with just over 1,000 protesters involved, police were caught napping. They had to call in neighboring forces to help. Even the United team couldn't leave its hotel. Hugely embarrassing scenes with the possibility of more protests to come.

ROMANS: Really remarkable. All right, Alex Thomas. Thank you so much for that from London for us this morning.

All right. Well, thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans this Monday morning for you.

JARRETT: I'm Laura Jarrett. "NEW DAY" is next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[05:59:36]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Berman in New York alongside Brianna Keilar in Washington.

On this new day, Liz Cheney at risk, Mitt Romney booed. The MAGA takeover of the Republican Party clear now more than ever.

Plus, President Biden hits the road trying to sell his $4 trillion agenda. So how are voters reacting to the price tag? We asked them.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: A private school in Miami is banning teachers from getting the vaccine, citing anti-vax conspiracies. We will speak live with a parent who has pulled their kid.

And new warnings from America's top general. And, Hillary Clinton.