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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Biden Prepares For Historic Face-To-Face With Vladimir Putin; Biden Pushes European Leaders To Focus On China Threat; Chemical Fire To Burn For Days, Area Residents Forced To Evacuate. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired June 15, 2021 - 05:30   ET

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

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[05:30:46]

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, good morning, everybody. This is EARLY START. I'm Christine Romans.

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Laura Jarrett. It's about 30 minutes past the hour here in New York.

President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin set to meet face- to-face tomorrow. Neither man has minced words in the lead-up to this meeting. The president is standing by his claim that Putin is a killer. Putin has been denying involvement in ransomware attacks and refusing to pledge that opposition leader Alexey Navalny will leave prison alive.

So what will happen between closed doors -- between the leaders behind closed doors?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I've been doing this a long time and the last thing anyone would do is negotiate in front of the world press as to how he's going to approach a critical meeting with another adversary and/or someone who could be an adversary. It's the last thing I'm going to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: CNN's Frederik Pleitgen live in Geneva, Switzerland for us this morning. And Fred, what do we know about what's happening tomorrow?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Christine, what we do know is that both leaders seem to have been trying to sort of tone down the emotional rhetoric a little bit in the run-up to this summit.

Obviously, you had President Biden come out yesterday and called Vladimir Putin a worthy adversary. And Putin, for his part, basically brushed off those killer remarks and says that he respects President Biden. That President Biden has been in the game for a very long time. And it's really interesting because this morning we actually did hear from the Russian side. A senior aide to the Kremlin saying that they believe that even if these talks don't achieve some sort of final communique, which they very well might not, they still believe that these talks are very important simply to map out where the two sides could agree and where there are fundamental disagreements that cannot be reached.

And that's very similar to what President Biden said yesterday as well, where he said at the very least, he wants to tell Vladimir Putin the position of the United States and tell him where America's red lines might be.

Let's listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: I'm going to make clear to President Putin that there are areas where we can cooperate if he chooses. And if he chooses not to cooperate and acts in a way that he has in the past relative to cybersecurity and some other activities, then we will respond. We will respond in-kind.

There need not be -- we should decide where it's in our mutual interest and the interest of the world to cooperate and see if we can do that. In the areas where we don't agree, make it clear what the red lines are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: That's pretty much exactly what the Russians are saying as well. They say they want to bring more predictability into the relations between the U.S. and Russia and just also improve the lines of communication as well.

Of course, a lot of those topics are going to be very difficult. One of the ones that President Biden just mentioned there, cybersecurity, certainly one that's going to be a tough topic between the two leaders. Really difficult to say if the Russians might eventually budge on Ukraine. That's certainly not something that seems to be in the cards. The Russians are also saying that Belarus could be on the agenda as well.

And then, of course, also the fate of opposition leader Alexey Navalny. The Russians are saying it's not necessarily something they want to talk about but they do believe that the U.S. is going to bring that up, Christine.

ROMANS: Fred, tell us about the new reporting overnight on those Americans held in Russian prisons -- Trevor Reed and Paul Whelan.

PLEITGEN: Yes.

ROMANS: Are we expecting any movement on that front?

PLEITGEN: Well look, one of the things that's sort of been not in the works but possibly being discussed as being part of that meeting is a possible prisoner exchange between the U.S. and Russia. Vladimir Putin saying that he is very much up for something like that if it can be agreed on.

There are, of course, some Russians who are in U.S. custody that the Russians would really like to get back. One of the ones, for instance, is the arms dealer Viktor Bout. And there is some CNN reporting saying that the -- or we got from the judge that actually sentenced Viktor Bout, saying that he's already been in jail for much longer than he probably should have and as part of the prisoner exchange, she believes that would be a good idea.

However, the Russians kind of pouring cold water on that earlier today. They're saying that Paul Whelan, for instance, is not something -- his case is not something that's currently being discussed between the U.S. and Russia. The Russians are saying that there have been discussions between the two sides and that there is an international mechanism to try and sort something like that out. But, Paul Whelan's case -- specifically, they say -- has been excluded from that.

[05:35:07]

He's, of course, serving a long sentence in Russia right now for an alleged espionage case that he says is trumped up -- his lawyers say is trumped up.

That's not to say that there can't be negotiations here in Geneva where the two leaders could come to some sort of agreement. But the Russians are simply saying so far, as far as normal mechanisms are concerned internationally, Paul Whelan's case, so far, has been excluded, Christine.

ROMANS: All right, Fred Pleitgen for us in Geneva. Thank you, sir -- Laura.

JARRETT: As for the NATO summit, CNN has learned the U.S. and the E.U. will form a joint council on trade and technology in an effort to combat China. Biden had pushed European leaders to boost their focus on China as part of a broader faceoff between autocracy versus democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: The democratic values that undergird our alliance are under increasing pressure, both internally and externally. Russia and China are both seeking to drive a wedge in our transatlantic solidarity. We're seeing an increase in militia cyber activity.

But our alliance is a strong foundation on which we can -- our collective security and our shared prosperity can continue to be built.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Melissa Bell is live in Brussels for us. Melissa, good morning. What's the focus there before Biden meets with Putin? MELISSA BELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Laura, just first of all on those words we just heard from the American president, music to the ears of Europeans who for the last few years have been champions of multilateralism and the promotion of democracy -- everything Joe Biden's been speaking about these last few years. But they've been fighting a fairly lonely battle, so that was good news.

And I think it explains to some extent the steps that Europe has taken towards Joe Biden -- for instance, on China. Europeans wanting a much softer approach towards Beijing -- one much more focused on cooperation than direct confrontation. So the fact that in the final communique at NATO yesterday they got to that question of China posing a challenge, that is something of a victory for Joe Biden and Europeans made a step towards him there.

Another important step, of course, on Afghanistan. You know that there were a lot of feathers ruffled here in Europe at the American withdrawal. Remember that the initial going in had been based on invocation of that article five of NATO -- the way that the withdrawal was announced. The unilateral decision to remove the American troops from Afghanistan very badly taken by coalition partners here in Europe.

So, some reconciliation over that and appreciation by the rest of NATO allies that it is right that the United States may now withdraw and that new ways need to be found to try and support the country post-the American withdrawal.

Then, of course, there is the question of China and what to do next. And as you just mentioned, I think that is an important part of what's going to happen here today. The American president meeting with the Belgian king -- the Belgian prime minister. He'll meet with the European Institution leaders.

And I think that joint council that's going to promote trade and technology between the E.U. and the U.S. that, let's face it, represent 40 percent of the world's GDP -- the idea is that is to help them counter the economic rise -- the technological rise of China -- another way of taking the country on.

JARRETT: All right, Melissa Bell live in Brussels for us this morning. Thank you.

ROMANS: All right, to the U.S. economy now. The big question of this booming recovery, where are the workers? U.S. businesses complain enhanced unemployment checks are keeping jobless workers on the couch. Others blame childcare issues for keeping their workers at home.

Here's another reason for this labor shortage. Americans are starting their own businesses. New businesses are forming at a record rate this year, according to the census -- 2.4 million as of May 2021. That's already more than half of last year and closing in on the 3 1/2 million new businesses started the previous two years.

Now, some of these entrepreneurs lost jobs during the pandemic or they saw a niche that they could fill. Many new businesses are online retail, transportation and warehousing, or construction.

The shortage has been great, by the way -- the labor shortage -- for teen workers. They are in high demand as businesses staff up for the summer. One New Jersey restaurant owner says his business wouldn't survive without teenagers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRAVIS SEMBLEWSKI, GENERAL MANAGER, VIC'S ITALIAN RESTAURANT: This next generation of young high school and college students -- I have to say thank you because they are such hard workers. If we didn't have those people, I don't know where we would be.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: Teen unemployment rose to more than 30 percent during the pandemic and then fell to 9.6 percent in May. That's a low not seen, Laura, since 1953.

JARRETT: Wow.

ROMANS: I know. It's really interesting, these trends that you're seeing in the labor market.

One thing I will say is a lot of this disruption, economists think will be short-lived. It will start to work its way out in the fall as people get their kids back in school. And there's a real daycare shortage too, so a lot of people don't have someplace to put their kids --

JARRETT: Right, right.

ROMANS: -- and that's a problem.

JARRETT: Yes, and that's a problem.

[05:40:00]

ROMANS: Yes. That's not going away.

JARRETT: Right.

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson confirmed by the U.S. Senate to fill a vacancy on the influential U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit. This prestigious seat is often viewed as a stepping stone to the U.S. Supreme Court and Judge Jackson is widely seen as a favorite for a potential pick.

The vote was 53 to 44 with Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski joining Democrats in favor of confirmation.

President Biden pledged during the campaign to put the first Black woman on the U.S. Supreme Court should a vacancy arise.

ROMANS: All right, bad behavior in the sky. Look, I know you've seen it and you've been hearing about it. It's reaching levels never seen before.

The FAA says airlines have reported 3,000 cases of unruly behavior by passengers just this year, including more than 2,000 cases related to face masks. The agency usually deals only with 100 to 150 reports of unruly behavior in any given year. Think of that -- 100 to 150 and we're at 3,000.

In one of the latest examples, a passenger apparently commandeered the intercom on an Atlanta-bound Delta flight Friday night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEFON DUNCAN, DELTA PASSENGER, OFF-DUTY DELTA EMPLOYEE: I'll take down the plane (ph).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: The plane was forced to land in Oklahoma City. It turns out the passenger there was a man named Stephon Duncan, a Delta Airlines off-duty flight attendant.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So I didn't think much of it. But then as people started to get a little closer and the stewards and the flight attendants were trying to get him to sit back down, he started getting more erratic and then it started escalating. And then I realized that something was clearly wrong here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: An arrest report obtained by CNN from the Oklahoma City police says Duncan was, quote, "making statements about being seated next to a terrorist and stashing his personal items in various places through the plane."

The FAA has announced hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines against the unruly passengers with more to come, no doubt.

And Southwest and American Airlines, in case you're wondering, have delayed the return of in-flight alcohol service.

I think if you're an executive at one of these airlines you've got to wonder about adding in alcohol on top of this when you've already got people completely unglued.

JARRETT: Or maybe you need alcohol to deal with what's going on.

ROMANS: Maybe I do, but they don't. I don't know.

Finally back in front of an audience, Stephen Colbert took a moment to thank the only live audience he has had for 15 months, his wife.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, CBS "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT": Is there anything you'd like to say to the people?

EVELYN MCGEE-COLBERT, WIFE OF STEPHEN COLBERT: OK audience, he's all yours now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: She's great. I mean, you could hear her laugh all during the year and --

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[05:46:53]

JARRETT: An environmental nightmare. That's what authorities are calling this huge chemical fire in Rockton, Illinois. Residents within three miles of the blaze are being urged to mask up to avoid respiratory issues. The smoke plume casting a miles-long shadow, you can see.

The fire is expected to burn for several days. The fire chief says he's worried about chemicals running off into a nearby river.

ROMANS: And in Arizona, the Telegraph Fire burning through containment lines overnight, growing to nearly 105,000 acres. The fire is only 68 percent contained.

Climate change is triggering historic drought conditions in the west. Fires are also burning in the subalpine forest in the Rockies and in Colorado and southern Wyoming at the highest levels in 2,000 years.

JARRETT: A deadly shooting at a Georgia supermarket following a dispute over wearing a mask. Authorities say the gunman argued with a cashier before leaving the store. He then came back and fatally shot her.

The gunman got into a shootout with a reserve sheriff's deputy, as well, who was working security at the store. Both were wounded.

The incident is the latest involving frontline workers dealing with hostile people over COVID protocols.

ROMANS: All right, California fully reopens today. The state was the first to implement lockdown measures at the start of the pandemic. But now, all businesses will be able to open at 100 percent capacity and mask mandates -- they will be dropped for anyone fully vaccinated. Masks will still be required in certain settings, including healthcare, public transit, and indoor K through 12 schools.

(Horns blowing and bells chiming in New York City)

JARRETT: Remember at the start of the pandemic -- that sound? New York City residents thanking heroic frontline workers with a round of applause every night at 7:00 p.m. across the city.

Now those workers will be honored with a much older New York City tradition, the famed ticker tape parade. It's scheduled for July seventh to honor healthcare staff, first responders, and other essential workers. It will be New York City's first official parade since the pandemic began.

ROMANS: It gives me goosebumps. It's so exciting.

JARRETT: So glad it's back.

ROMANS: All right, let's look at markets around the world right now. Asian shares closed mixed. Europe has opened higher here. And on Wall Street, stock index futures are also leaning a little bit higher here.

It was another quiet day but that was enough for a record high for the S&P and the Nasdaq. Tech stocks led the charge.

This week focuses on the Federal Reserve's two-day policy meeting that wraps up Wednesday. The central bank is expected to keep its easy- money policies in place.

Another inflation gauge -- the Producer Price Index is out today and May's U.S. retail sales are expected to fall. In fact, Washington Prime Group -- that's a major mall owner of more than 100 locations -- filed for bankruptcy Monday citing pandemic-related shutdowns.

Important news here for low-income Americans who don't typically file tax returns. You can now register for the expanded child tax credit. This is money that will go directly to you every month.

The IRS unveiled an online sign-up to it Monday. It allows users to upload the necessary info so the agency can direct deposit funds into your account.

This beefed-up child tax credit is expected to lift more than five million children out of poverty.

[05:50:01]

Americans are keeping their cars longer than ever before. The average age of a car in the U.S. rose to a record 12.1 years last year. That's according to IHS Market.

The pandemic caused a shortage of computer chips, hurting supply and raising prices. That prompted owners simply to hold onto their cars longer. The average price of a new car hit a record $38,255 in May. Used car prices are up 39 percent since the start of this year.

YouTube is banning ads for gambling, alcohol, prescription drugs, and politics. On the masthead of its homepage -- that's the banner at the top of its Website. YouTube's policies have been under scrutiny, particularly around misinformation and hate speech. It's one of several platforms last year that agreed to an outside audit of policies against harmful content.

JARRETT: All right. Last night, the L.A. Clippers got some help from their superstar in a big way. Carolyn Manno has this morning's Bleacher Report and she's here with us in person.

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yay. Hi, good morning.

JARRETT: So glad to have you back.

MANNO: I am thrilled to be back with you guys. It's a lot of fun to be here. I don't even know what to do with my hands. I feel like I haven't been here in about a year and a half.

JARRETT: And I'm sorry. Don't try to start your computer because it probably won't boot up.

MANNO: Right -- yes, yes -- a work in progress.

Let's do a little bit of sports here in person.

Kawhi Leonard and the Clippers, like Laura mentioned, went into game four against the Jazz looking for a big performance to even up the series.

And Kawhi delivered and then some, getting everybody's attention in the second quarter. Leonard at the three-point line just takes off -- a monster dunk -- over Jazz center Derrick Favors. The restricted capacity crowd of just over 8,000 erupting. Leonard finished the night with 31.

But the dunk had everybody talking. Even Sixers player Joel Embiid, who was livestreaming it on his phone while speaking to reporters after his game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOEL EMBIID, CENTER, PHILADELPHIA 76ERS: Then, of course, you can -- you can kind of -- oh my God. Did you see that dunk?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?

EMBIID: You see that Kawhi dunk?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, it was crazy. (INAUDIBLE).

EMBIID: Yes. That Kawhi dunk was crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MANNO: The Clippers take game four, tying the series with two straight wins. Game five is set for tomorrow night.

As far as Embiid's performance, last night was rough for Philadelphia's big man who continues to deal with a plaguing knee injury. He's spent part of the first half in the locker room. He just didn't have any lift and went zero for 12 after the break.

The Hawks really needed a win in this one and despite trailing by as many as 18 points in the first half, Atlanta came back to beat the Sixers in game four to even up their series at two games apiece. Trae Young finishing with 25 points and 18 assists. And if you didn't catch this from the European Championships, the goal of the tournament, so far, courtesy of Czech Republic striker Patrick Schick. An outrageous strike from 54 yards away. Do you believe this? At the halfway line, lobs it over Scotland's goalkeeper, who ended up in his own net.

The stunner marking the longest goal at a Euro or World Cup since 1980. It was also his second of the day. The Czech Republic beating Scotland two-nil in that match.

And some good news this morning concerning Denmark's Christian Eriksen after suffering a nearly fatal cardiac arrest during the country's match on Saturday. The Danish player is recovering well in the hospital.

The Danish Football Association tweeting out a photo of him giving a thumbs-up, adding "A message from Eriksen," who thanked fans around the world for their support. He said he's fine under the circumstances and that he looks forward to cheering on his teammates.

Denmark faces Belgium on Thursday in the Euro, so he'll be watching. He'll be cheering on his team and it's going to be emotional for sure for players on both sides reacting to it.

JARRETT: Amazing, that story.

ROMANS: The reaction of the professionals on that field was so just unbelievable how quickly they were at his side and getting him with a defibrillator.

MANNO: Yes.

ROMANS: I just -- really hard to watch. I'm so glad he's doing better.

MANNO: Yes.

JARRETT: So glad to see you.

ROMANS: Nice to see you, Carolyn.

JARRETT: Thanks, Carolyn.

Finally this morning, a long-awaited return.

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CBS "THE LATE SHOW WITH STEPHEN COLBERT" intro.

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JARRETT: Stephen Colbert back with a live audience there in the Ed Sullivan Theater for the first time in 15 months -- 460 days to be exact.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) S. COLBERT: So, how you been? It's great to be back. We never -- we never really left but we certainly weren't here. This is a slightly different energy than the converted storage room eight floors above us.

If you haven't been vaccinated yet what are you waiting for? There are great incentives out there. Tomorrow, Taco Bell is giving vaccinated Californians a free seasoned beef Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos taco. It's perfect for anyone who wants to get vaccinated but still doesn't value human life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Colbert's big return included his wife -- his only live audience for many of his virtual pandemic shows. She told the crowd to laugh because she said he needs it. I think we call do.

[05:55:08]

ROMANS: He's back in the studio. Carolyn Manno's back in the studio. Look, everyone's happy. We're all winners.

JARRETT: Everyone's vaccinated and we're making strides.

ROMANS: All right, thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.

JARRETT: I'm Laura Jarrett. "NEW DAY" is next.

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BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Brianna Keilar alongside John Berman on this new day.

Preparing for Putin. What both sides have planned for President Biden's high-stakes meeting with the Russian president.

And new president, same play. Mitch McConnell threatens to block another Supreme Court seat if Republicans win back the Senate.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Today, the U.S. expected to hit 600,000 deaths from coronavirus as concern grows over a fast-spreading variant.

And the computer glitch overnight that grounded flights and triggered delays nationwide.