Return to Transcripts main page
Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin
Biden Warns "COVID-19 Has Not Been Vanquished"; Families in Deadly 2017 London Fire Still Seeking Answers; Ukrainian Army Requiring Female Soldiers To Wear High Heels. Aired 5:30-6a ET
Aired July 06, 2021 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:32:13]
LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, everyone. This is EARLY START. I'm Laura Jarrett.
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Christine Romans. It is 31 -- 32 minutes exactly past the hour this Tuesday morning.
President Biden promised this July Fourth would look a lot more normal and it sure did. The president welcomed 1,000 essential workers and military personnel to the south lawn this weekend. But even with all the well-earned, well-deserved celebrations, concerns over the Delta variant are rising. Parts of the U.S. still in the grips of a deadly pandemic and some people still refuse to get vaccinated.
Let's go to Washington and bring in Jasmine Wright. Jasmine, what's the president's strategy to combat vaccine hesitancy here?
JASMINE WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Christine, officials say that the administration will be doubling down its efforts to get more Americans vaccinated, really, over these next two summer months. That's, of course, as the White House failed to meet their goal of trying to partially vaccinate 70 percent of U.S. adults.
The president, the first lady, the vice president, cabinet officials -- we all saw them out over the weekend driving home this message of yes, we are celebrating just how far the country has come in its fight against COVID. But also, really making a plea to Americans to get those shots as officials are concerned about unvaccinated Americans and what will happen with this new Delta variant -- highly contagious -- that folks are concerned about.
So, President Biden repeated that message on Sunday at that big barbecue bash on July Fourth, the first of his presidency, really driving home that he wants to see more Americans get their shots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: COVID-19 has not been vanquished. We all know powerful variants have emerged, like the Delta variant. But the best defense against these variants is to get vaccinated. My fellow Americans, it's the most patriotic thing you can do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WRIGHT: So, Christine, we will see a shift of the administration's strategy away from those mass vaccination sites -- kind of an acknowledgment of just how decreased those vaccination rates have become -- and really moving towards a more localized, targeted approach trying to make sure that there are enough vaccine supplies in these local markets and that there's someone there to answer questions about them as we start to see these pockets around the country of low vaccination rates compared to other places in the country. And those are areas that are concerning --
ROMANS: Yes.
WRIGHT: -- officials with that Delta variant.
And the White House said just this week, they will start to send out those surge response teams in those areas -- Christine.
ROMANS: And we know that those unvaccinated people -- those unvaccinated communities are just, honestly, a breeding ground for variants. They're a variant factory.
WRIGHT: We've got to (ph).
ROMANS: And we know that at this point going forward here, vaccination is what will prevent death. These are preventable deaths that we are seeing around the country because of COVID.
[05:35:00]
Jasmine, nice to see you this morning. Thank you.
JARRETT: So you just heard Jasmine mention these hotspot pockets. Well, a Missouri hospital system now forced to transfer coronavirus patients to other facilities because of staff shortages. Officials with Cox Health say they've sent patients to Kansas City, St. Louis, and even to hospitals in Arkansas due to an influx in cases.
Southwest Missouri is a COVID hotspot right now. Just 56 percent of adults in Missouri have received at least one vaccine dose. Thirty- nine percent are fully vaccinated.
And a summer camp in Texas turned superspreader event. More than 125 campers and counselors who attended the camp run by Clear Creek Community Church in Galveston have tested positive for COVID-19.
According to the church pastor, the ministry camp for sixth through 12th graders was held in mid-June and more than 400 people attended. The pastor says hundreds of others were likely exposed when those infected returned home.
Local health officials are working with church leadership to investigate this outbreak and trace any potential contacts. ROMANS: Pandemic travel restrictions between the U.S. and Canada are
easing now. Fully vaccinated Canadians can now avoid the 14-day quarantine that has been required since March of 2020. And eligible air travelers no longer have to spend their first three days in Canada at a government-approved hotel
The prime minister, Justin Trudeau, says plans to totally reopen the border will be announced over the next few weeks.
JARRETT: That's welcome news.
Search and rescue efforts in Surfside, Florida operating with a new sense of urgency this morning. With tropical storm Elsa threatening the state and potentially hampering the search, crews are working as fast as they can and as safely as they can. Victims' families members can only watch, and wait, and worry.
In some ways, the Surfside disaster is reminiscent of the Grenfell Tower tragedy in London just four years ago. That residential tower went up in flames, killing 72 people. The survivors and victims' families are still searching for answers today.
CNN's Salma Abdelaziz is live in London with this story. Salma, you have been on this from the very beginning. There are some comparisons here as you explained in the past. What are some of the lessons from the Grenfell tragedy?
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN REPORTER: Laura, I've been speaking to some of the survivors, the bereaved family members from the Grenfell Tower fire -- that tower that stands behind me here -- really, a scar in the middle of this community. And they told me they watched those pictures playing out of Miami like it was a nightmare all over again.
They said their hearts go out to those families suffering through that pain. They said they see them as being in chapter one of what's going to be a long journey to fight for justice for their own, but to fight for changes to make sure it doesn't happen again.
Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): The early hours of June 14th, 2017. A fire sparked by a kitchen appliance engulfs Grenfell Tower in a matter of minutes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh my God.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Families wake up to find themselves trapped inside an inferno.
From her apartment on the 22nd floor, a terrified Nadia Choucair calls her brother. He quickly rushes to the scene.
NABIL CHOUCAIR, BEREAVED FAMILY MEMBER: You could see and feel it from that distance so far away. You could literally feel the heat. ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): For hours, the blaze burned on. Nadia was spotted desperately waving a makeshift flag from her window.
CHOUCAIR: And we still had hope that they'd made it out. Then when you get told one-by-one that they've been found and they're deceased, it kind of cuts you up and then cuts you up again.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Nadia Choucair, her mother, her husband, and their three daughters died in their home. They are among the 72 lost to the fire.
Nabil's life is now consumed by the fight for justice.
CHOUCAIR: Every day I'm thinking about Grenfell. Every day I'm doing things about Grenfell every day. It's all Grenfell, Grenfell.
ABDELAZIZ (on camera): A public inquiry into what happened that night drags on. There's hearings scheduled into next year. And until it reaches its conclusion, the police say no criminal prosecutions can take place. That means it could take years before justice or accountability is reached.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): A highly flammable cladding wrapped around the social house block made the tower a tinderbox, experts said.
Tiago Alves told us his childhood home was a deathtrap. He and his family fled from the 13th floor.
TIAGO ALVES, GRENFELL FIRE SURVIVOR: I was trying to understand how this could happen. So a country, which is one of the richest countries in the world, allows for the building in the street to place flammable material on the outside of a building, which is then allowed to go up in flames.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): Numerous other problems with the building have come to light during the public inquiry. There was no centralized fire alarm, no sprinkler system, limited exits. Firefighters also ordered people to stay in their apartments for almost two hours before calling for an evacuation.
[05:40:04]
Now, Alves is one of many demanding wide-ranging reforms, from a ban on combustible cladding to tougher safety rules.
ALVES: There is probably some 20-year-old out there, just like I was when the fire happened. And until I can make sure that someone like that doesn't have to experience what I did that night, I don't think I could ever stop.
ABDELAZIZ (voice-over): The shrouded remains of Grenfell still loom over London's skyline, a reminder of a tragedy that could have been avoided and must never happen again.
(END VIDEOTAPE) ABDELAZIZ: Now, in terms of the investigation, so far what has been reached is they are still in the inquiry phase. Essentially, they're still collecting testimony, collecting evidence. They have not even reached the criminal phase if that occurs -- any prosecutions or holding people responsible.
Everyone I spoke to said they expect this to take years, Laura. And that was their message to people in Miami. This is going to take a long time, not just to get the justice you need but to get the legislative reforms that you want to see to make sure that doesn't happen again.
In the meanwhile, what keeps them up at night is the fear that this could happen again -- Laura.
JARRETT: Yes, so many failures upon failures there. It's just a tragedy.
All right, Salma, thank you for your reporting on all this, as usual.
ROMANS: Software vendor Kaseya says fewer than 1,500 businesses have been affected by that recent ransomware attack. But experts say the full extent of this attack won't be felt until Tuesday when people are back at work today.
Cyber officials say the ransomware group REvil demanded a $70 million payment in Bitcoin for a decryptor tool to restore the data.
In an interview with Reuters, Kaseya's CEO would not say whether they will pay the hackers. "No comment on anything to do with negotiating with terrorists in any way."
The REvil malware hit a wide range of I.T. management companies and compromised hundreds of their corporate clients late last week. One expert called the attack the biggest non-nation state supply chain attack ever and possibly the second-biggest ransomware attack ever.
Kaseya said it met with the FBI and cybersecurity authorities on Monday night.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:46:17]
JARRETT: Welcome back.
Female soldiers in the Ukraine have been trained for combat and they've also been forced to train for more than a month to march in -- get this -- high heels. Ukraine's Ministry of Defense is defending its decision to make the cadets march in heels next month to celebrate 30 years of independence from the former Soviet Union. That, despite some serious backlash and anger from a number of local lawmakers there.
CNN's Matthew Chance rejoins us from Moscow. Matthew, why, oh why, oh why are they doing this?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well -- I mean, it is -- it's painful, isn't it, to --
JARRETT: Yes.
CHANCE: -- watch. And there's been a -- and to be fair, there's been -- there's been a lot of criticism inside Ukraine from the cabinet of the Ukrainian government about why this is happening.
I mean, they've -- the cabinet ministers have said look, this is, first of all, inappropriate, making female soldiers parade in these heels. They're saying it doesn't reflect their combat state. Just remember, Russia was a -- Ukraine, sorry, is a country at war with Russia-backed rebels in the east of the country. And there are 57 of these -- thousand female troops that are fighting in that -- in that conflict.
And also, there's been a health issue raised. I mean, marching in shoes like that -- you know, it's not going to be -- it's not going to be good for you, obviously. And so, there's that massive (INAUDIBLE) that's broken out.
The Defense Ministry has -- you know, initially, it has defended it, saying look, other armies in the world -- they issue heels to female soldiers in their dress uniforms. But it's also been pointed out that they don't normally expect those soldiers to march in those -- in those shoes.
And so now the Defense Ministry in Ukraine is saying OK, look, we're going to -- we're going to look at this. We're going to see if we can find any -- something a bit more comfortable. And they seem to be pulling back on that.
But you know what, Laura? It illustrates a sort of broader problem about the perception of women --
JARRETT: Yes.
CHANCE: -- in the Ukraine. It's something that's playing out across the world, of course. We're seeing this debate about what's appropriate for female soldiers and for females in general, and what's not appropriate. You can be on one side of the debate or the other but, I mean, this is the latest iteration of that in Ukraine, which is perhaps not fully at the same place in that debate that we are in other countries in the world.
JARRETT: Yes, I think that would be putting it mildly. Another word for it is just sexism. That would also fit, too.
All right, Matthew -- appreciate you being on top of this one for us. I know it's not easy.
ROMANS: Some of the women also in the military were saying that they were actually training. They had --
JARRETT: Yes.
ROMANS: -- set aside -- set aside time --
JARRETT: Yes.
ROMANS: -- to actually train to march in those block-heeled shoes, which just seems like a --
JARRETT: With the little tiny socks.
ROMANS: -- colossal waste of time. Not only sexist and weird, just a colossal waste of time.
All right, England is planning to lift most of its pandemic restrictions in the next two weeks now. Prime Minister Boris Johnson touting the success of the U.K. vaccine rollout even as the country battles a rise in new cases from that highly transmissible Delta variant.
Cyril Vanier joins us from London this morning. Is the U.K. really ready, Cyril, to lift most of these restrictions?
CYRIL VANIER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Look, the U.K. is ready to conduct an experiment that I think many other countries in the world are going to be watching closely. Because the British prime minister told us that by the time the restrictions are lifted two weeks from now, there could be 50,000 infections a day. And just a few hours ago, the health secretary said later this summer it could be 100,000 infections a day.
Now, when we had anywhere close to those infections -- infection numbers earlier this year, the country had to be shut down. But what has changed since then is that a large part of the adult population has been vaccinated. Almost two-thirds of the adult population.
[05:50:00]
So the idea now is that infection numbers on their own are no longer a good bellwether to determine how the country is doing. And you have to look at hospitalizations and deaths instead of actually the number of infections, right? How many people are getting severe forms of the disease? That is what the government wants to be looking at right now.
And the vaccination has cut the link between infections and severe cases -- or at least weakened that link.
So the government is gambling that it is going to be able to reopen everything fully and that it is going to be able to leave things like whether or not you wear a mask, whether or not you socially distance -- leave those decisions to people instead of legally require them to follow certain restrictions.
As I said, this is going to be an experiment. The World Health Organization says it is too soon to reopen. The British Medical Association also says that face coverings should continue to be a legal requirement. But the government and the prime minister is following his libertarian instinct.
ROMANS: Cyril, thank you so much for that. We will watch it all play out and we know you'll be there for us -- thanks.
To Iowa now. A tragic accident at an amusement park. An 11-year-old boy died after his raft overturned on a raging river ride. Police identified the victim as Michael Jaramillo.
Three other riders from the same raft were also injured. One is in critical condition.
Officials at the Adventureland Park in Altoona, Iowa say the ride was inspected the day before the accident and found to be in good working order.
On that same ride, by the way, back in 2016, a worker was killed.
JARRETT: It's just so terrible.
All right, new details this morning about the case everyone is talking about -- Britney Spears' fight to free herself from that court-ordered conservatorship that's she been living under since 20 -- 2018, I should say.
According to a new "New Yorker" investigation, the popstar called 911 to report that she was a victim of conservatorship abuse. The call coming the night before her dramatic court testimony last month in which Spears pleaded with that judge to end this arrangement that she says has left her traumatized, depressed, and enslaved.
Journalists Ronan Farrow co-authored this investigation. He's telling CNN it's the latest in a long, disturbing history of her conservatorship.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RONAN FARROW, CONTRIBUTING WRITER, THE NEW YORKER: Britney Spears has been distraught about the extent to which her rights are being curtailed for a long time. How Britney Spears has sought actively and, seemingly, capably to get outside legal representation to break free of these constraints -- at this point, for years and years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JARRETT: The next court hearing in Spears' conservatorship case is July 14th.
And this morning, Hollywood fans -- I should say Hollywood heavyweights and movie fans are mourning the death of producer and director Richard Donner. He died Monday at the age of 91.
Donner had a six-decade career with films include "Superman" with Christopher Reeve, and the 1980s classic "The Goonies."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
Scene from Warner Bros, "The Goonies."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
JARRETT: Donner also helped bring new life to the buddy comedy with work on the "Lethal Weapon" franchise.
Director Steven Spielberg put out a statement remembering Donner as being, quote, "The greatest Goonie of all. He was all kid. All heart. All the time."
ROMANS: He certainly left an impact.
All right, let's get a check on CNN Business this morning. Looking at markets around the world this Tuesday morning, you can see Asian shares closed narrowly mixed here, and Europe has opened lower. On Wall Street, stock index futures are basically flat here.
Watching oil, really -- the big story this morning after OPEC and its allies canceled a meeting Monday. No meeting has been scheduled. You can see oil prices are higher.
At the same time, Americans are hitting the road again. Drivers are seeing the highest gas prices in seven years. Adding to those inflation headaches we've been telling you about hitting the reopening economy -- a booming economy. That is the downside.
Tyson Foods has recalled 8 1/2 million pounds of ready-to-eat chicken products because they may be contaminated with listeria. The USDA says the products were produced between December 26, 2020 and April 13th this year.
Walmart, Publix, and Wegmans -- some of the stores that sold this chicken. Take a good look at the package. The agency says anyone that still has these products, throw them away or return them to the store.
A full list of recalled products can be found on the USDA website.
JARRETT: Finally this morning, she was born to ride. Jessica Springsteen, daughter of the Boss, Bruce Springsteen, is now a United States Olympian. On Monday, she was named to the four-member U.S. Equestrian Jumping Team for the Summer Games in Tokyo coming up.
The 29-year-old Springsteen is one of the top jumpers in the country and has been on horseback for most of her life.
A family of underachievers, I guess, right?
ROMANS: Yes, exactly. Good luck to her. Good luck to everybody --
JARRETT: Yes.
ROMANS: -- on Team USA.
Thanks for joining us. I'm Christine Romans.
JARRETT: I'm Laura Jarrett. "NEW DAY" is next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[05:59:31]
JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm John Berman alongside Brianna Keilar.
On this new day, the pandemic still killing 200 Americans a day, many of whom just don't have to die. Why the nation is hitting a turning point as the Delta variant spreads.
Plus, new signs that Afghanistan is on the very of unraveling as the U.S. leaves the war-torn country.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And today marks six months since the insurrection at the Capitol and there are new fears not enough is being done to protect it from another attack as the FBI warns of potential violence by conspiracists.
And a goalie in the NHL killed during a fireworks accident. New details on the moments leading up to his tragic death.
