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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

FBI Releases New Video Of January 6 Pipe Bomb Suspect; Taliban Beat Afghan Women Protesting Interim Government; License Revoked From Nursing Homes Linked To Louisiana Warehouse Deaths. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired September 09, 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]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The vaccinated who still catch COVID.

SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST, "HANNITY": The science shows the vaccine will not necessarily protect you. It's not protecting many people.

WATT (voice-over): So not true. Here is a box-fresh fact. Those very rare breakthrough cases who suffer severe symptoms tend to be older -- 73, on average -- and have multiple other conditions like diabetes or heart disease, according to the CDC. And unvaccinated adults are 17 times more likely to be hospitalized than the fully vaccinated.

DR. EDITH BRACHO-SANCHEZ, PRIMARY CARE PEDIATRICIAN: I think we also need to have perspective and realize that the people who are hospitalized, the people who are suffering severe outcomes are the unvaccinated.

WATT (voice-over): In Miami-Dade County, Florida, 13 unvaccinated public school staff have now died since mid-August.

ALBERTO CARVALHO, SUPERINTENDENT, MIAMI-DADE COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Which represents, quite frankly, the danger of disinformation and misinformation which is so common these days.

WATT (voice-over): More than 60 percent of Americans have now had at least one vaccine shot. The average daily death toll keeps climbing but average new cases dropped four percent since last week.

It's regional, as always. Kentucky just had its worst week ever -- more than 30,000 new infections.

GOV. ANDY BESHEAR (D), KENTUCKY: We've called in FEMA strike teams, the National Guard. We've deployed nursing students all over the state. We could have prevented this by simply everybody going in and getting that vaccine.

WATT (voice-over): And as the new school year ramps up across the country more than a quarter of all new COVID-19 cases are now in kids.

Once again, a judge in Florida just ruled in favor of school mask mandates despite the mask-phobic, still bullish governor's law that bans the mandates.

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R), FLORIDA: I'm confident we'll end up winning on appeal in that case.

WATT (on camera): Now, Israel's health chief has been asked to address FDA vaccine advisers here in the U.S. at their meeting next weekend to present more data on those boosters.

But meantime, more than a quarter of eligible Americans still haven't had their first vaccine shot.

Nick Watt, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Nick, thank you for that.

The FBI has released new video footage showing a suspect appearing to plant two pipe bombs in Washington, D.C. the night before the deadly riots at the U.S. Capitol. Authorities managed to find the bombs before they went off, but the suspect is still at large.

Meantime, there are new security concerns about a scheduled rally in Washington, D.C. next week.

CNN's Jessica Schneider has more on this.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JESSICA SCHNEIDER, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Laura, the FBI releasing new video of the pipe bomb suspect who has alluded authorities for more than eight months now. This new clip shows the suspect sitting on a bench near the Democratic National Committee where one of the two bombs was placed January fifth, the night before the Capitol attack.

The FBI noting that this video gives a bit of a better frontal view of the suspect. But the fact is this suspect is still wearing a face mask and a hoodie, making a positive I.D. very difficult here.

But the FBI hoping something about this new video will trigger a key tip. They say they've already received more than 300 tips, plus they've conducted more than 800 interviews and received 23,000 video clips.

The FBI is also releasing a more comprehensive map of what they believe were the suspect's movements between 7:30 and 8:30 that night, January fifth. They're saying the operations were in the vicinity of Folger Park in Capital Hill.

But one important conclusion the FBI has finally come to, based on the suspect's movements and also interviews with the people who live in the area -- they now don't believe the suspect is from Washington, D.C.

So this new video -- it's coming as police around D.C. are ramping up security preps for this so-called "Justice for January 6" rally happening at the Capitol, September 18th.

We've learned that the temporary fencing that surrounded the Capitol for months after January sixth -- well, it might go back up. A source is telling our Ryan Nobles that Capitol Police have formally requested to the Capitol Police board that the fence be put in place ahead of that rally. The board will make the final call. We're hearing, though, it is likely, but we're told it would be a smaller fence than before and only up about 48 to 72 hours max.

Capitol officials have also already briefed some lawmakers on the security prep and we're expecting some more briefings in the coming days -- Laura.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Jessica, thank you for that.

Jumping overseas now to women in Afghanistan taking a stand against the Taliban, protesting the formation of an all-male interim government. Witnesses say the Taliban beat dozens of demonstrators with whips and sticks. The Taliban claim the protesters need permission to march.

CNN's Sam Kiley is live in Doha, Qatar with more. Sam, this had always been the worry that despite all of the nice talk and promises from the Taliban that women were still at risk.

[05:35:07]

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Women at risk -- and there was a hope, perhaps, a vain one. As, certainly, history has shown, it was a vain one that women might even be included in the government of the new Taliban, but not a single woman among them. No Hazara, no ethnic minorities, no minority religions.

This is a hardline government that this demonstration was against -- mostly women demanding rights -- their rights under international humanitarian law, and protesting against the monosexuality -- the single gender of this hardline Taliban government, which has also got members of it such as Sirajuddin Haqqani, the interior minister now of Afghanistan has an FBI -- he's on the FBI's most-wanted list with a multimillion-dollar reward leading to his arrest.

It's going to be very difficult to see how the United States is going to deal with the interior ministry of Afghanistan on the matter, for example, of evacuations of more Americans and others who want to get out of Afghanistan if the interior minister, himself, is a wanted terrorist under U.S. law.

So a very draconian response, too, now from the Taliban, saying that all demonstrations have to be preapproved. They have to get approval in writing. Even the slogans and banners have to be approved ahead of time.

And reports from the streets in Kabul are that there are a lot more Taliban out on patrol than there have been before, Laura. JARRETT: More to come on this for sure. Sam Kiley, thank you so much for that report.

And overnight, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presiding over a midnight military parade. The event marked the country's 73rd anniversary. Kim was seen on a platform in Kim II-Sung Square waving to the crowd. North Korean observers say the images appear to show him looking slimmer and healthier.

Back here in the U.S., a source tells CNN the Biden administration has told 11 Trump appointees to military service academy advisory boards to resign or be fired. The list includes former White House press secretary Sean Spicer, former senior counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway, and former national security advisor H.R. McMaster.

Now, White House press secretary Jen Psaki, on Wednesday, confirmed that this request had, in fact, been made.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: I will let others evaluate whether they think Kellyanne Conway and Sean Spicer, and others were qualified or not political to serve on these boards. But the president's qualification requirements are not your party registration. They are whether you're qualified to serve and whether you are aligned with the values of this administration.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: The dismissal comes after the Pentagon recently reorganized its other advisory boards following a purge of former Trump appointees back in February.

Well, "The Washington Post" reports former President Trump will endorse a Wyoming attorney who is considering a primary challenge to Republican congresswoman Liz Cheney. Trump has voted to unseat Cheney since she voted to impeach him for his role in inciting the January sixth riots on the U.S. Capitol.

Now, Trump's reported backing of Harriet Hageman comes ahead of her formal entry into the race. The Wyoming primary is still 11 months away.

And on the Democratic side, former President Barack Obama is urging Californians to keep Democratic governor Gavin Newsom in office ahead of a recall vote next week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Your vote could be the difference between protecting our kids and putting them at risk. Helping Californians recover or taking us backwards.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JARRETT: Newsom's challenger, right-wing talk show host Larry Elder, is leading the Republicans in this race to replace Newsom if, in fact, he's recalled. He's been laying the groundwork to challenge the results with baseless claims of election shenanigans, to use his words.

And on Wednesday, Elder narrowly missed getting egged by an angry crowd near a homeless encampment in L.A.'s Venice neighborhood.

This, as other high-profile Democrats are coming to Gov. Newsom's defense. Vice President Kamala Harris is also lending a hand, as CNN's Maeve Reston reports for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAEVE RESTON, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL REPORTER (on camera): Well, Laura, more than 6.4 million ballots have been cast in California and they are coming in fast.

And what the Newsom campaign was hoping was that Kamala Harris could come out here and drive home that message to Democratic voters that they need to turn in their ballots in this election or they are facing the possibility of an arch-conservative replacing Newsom as governor in the September 14th election.

Kamala Harris, just like Gavin Newsom has been doing in the last few days, tried to come out here and nationalize this race and talk about the Texas abortion law that went into effect last week, and argue that many of the rights that Californians hold dear in this very blue state could be at stake if a Republican like Larry Elder was in office.

[05:40:04]

She and Newsom also argued that there was -- that this was a life and death issue because of Larry Elder's opposition to mask and vaccine mandates.

And Kamala Harris made the argument that if this works in California -- such a deep blue state -- that it may be a pattern that is replicated across the country. So let's take a listen to that.

KAMALA HARRIS, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This recall campaign is about California and it's about a whole lot more. They're thinking that if they can get this done in California they can go around the country and do this.

You've got to understand what's happening right now. What's happening in Texas, what's happening in Georgia, what's happening around our country with these policies that are about attacking women's rights, reproductive rights, voting rights, workers' rights.

They think if they can win in California they can do this anywhere. Well, we will show them you're not going to get this done -- not here -- never.

RESTON (on camera): So you can see that they are really trying to nationalize this race, to drive home the consequences, to shake Democrats out of their apathy. And they are hoping that will really work and that the level of turnout among Democrats will remain high and be able to withstand a big Republican turnout on Election Day, Laura.

Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Maeve, thank you for that.

Just ahead, the latest on what was Tropical Storm Mindy making landfall overnight in Florida. And the NFL's season kickoff now just hours away. More on what's different for players and fans this year.

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[05:45:53]

JARRETT: Welcome back.

Health officials in Louisiana have revoked the license of seven nursing homes that sent their patients to a crowded warehouse just ahead of Hurricane Ida. At least seven people died after being transferred to that warehouse which, at one point, housed more than 800 patients. That's now being investigated by Louisiana's attorney general.

CNN's Ryan Young has more from Independence, Louisiana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RYAN YOUNG, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): Laura, when you think about the headline to this story it just makes you sick to your stomach. All those people trapped in a facility like this one, really needing help, especially after a hurricane.

When we came here, about 50 miles away from New Orleans, you can see still the wheelchairs that are left outside and the trash that was left here. Their sweltering heat was amazing that week after the storm and you can only imagine what these people were going through. If you look down there, you can still see oxygen tanks that have been left out.

Now, on top of this, there were 911 calls that went to the facility. There were over 60 of them. At one point, someone called and said there was a diabetic patient that needed transport because they had not eaten. And then on top of that, three hours later another caller called saying that someone was having seizures.

When you talk to some of these people who worked at the facility they were surprised by exactly what happened. The fallout has been pretty swift. You're talking about seven deaths and the owners of the facilities losing all the ability to have these nursing homes. But you can understand people are upset and wanting a more thorough investigation.

(END VIDEOTAPE) JARRETT: Ryan, thank you. A really disturbing report there.

Well, Tropical Storm Mindy, the 13th named storm of this powerful hurricane season, makes landfall along the Florida Panhandle. It's now weakened to a tropical depression but already bringing heavy rain to northern Florida as it pushes its way through Georgia and South Carolina.

More now from meteorologist Pedram Javaheri.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PEDRAM JAVAHERI, AMS METEOROLOGIST (on camera): Good morning, Laura.

Yes, this is what is left of our storm Mindy here as it pushes its way across the state of Georgia and eventually offshore over the next couple of hours. It brought with it 30 to 40 mile per hour winds, generally speaking, across the region as it made landfall as a tropical storm. Rainfall amounts -- three to four inches have already been observed in portions of Florida. Just south of Tallahassee, even higher amounts estimated to be around five inches across the region.

But it is a quick-moving disturbance. And notice several parts of Florida could see another round of strong thunderstorms into the morning hours and potentially, into the afternoon as well. Parts of coastal Georgia also getting in on some heavy rainfall. But the system eventually moves over cooler waters and it's out of here, fortunately, very quickly.

And it's really guided out of here by an incoming front that will bring some of the coolest temperatures in months across parts of the south into Birmingham and Atlanta, dropping off into the upper 50s in the coming days.

But back toward the west, a fire weather risk in place. We have a critical risk across the interior portion of the northwest. Temperatures there climbing up into the upper 90s with extremely dry and gusty winds in the forecast there -- Laura.

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JARRETT: Pedram, thank you.

The statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee that has towered over Richmond, Virginia for generations is now gone. As CNN's Joe Johns reports for us, hundreds of onlookers erupted in cheers and song as it was lifted off a pedestal and lowered to the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After 131 years on display, the city of Richmond, Virginia says goodbye to a monument that's been a source of controversy for decades.

This statue of Robert E. Lee, the largest Confederate statue that was still standing in the U.S., was erected in 1890, more than a generation after the Civil War. But today, it came down. A heavy-duty crane lifted the 12-ton Confederate general and his horse from its pedestal, cut into huge pieces for storage at a secure location.

For many in the crowd, this day could have come sooner.

KABAKA MAROON, WATCHED STATUE REMOVAL: It's hatred, and I do not like hatred, period.

[05:50:00]

JOHNS (voice-over): Getting to this point was a monumental battle. The controversy surrounding it was amplified by the Black Lives Matter protests last year.

And while Confederate monuments in other parts of the U.S. came down, including in nearby Charlottesville -- in Richmond, once the capital of the Confederacy, it took all three branches of government speaking with the same voice to overcome legal obstacles to removal.

GOV. RALPH NORTHAM (D), VIRGINIA: Yes, that statue has been there for a long time, but it was wrong then and it is wrong now.

JOHNS (voice-over): The Legislature passed a provision supporting the removal. And finally, last week, the Virginia Supreme Court threw out a challenge from some residents in the district and the descendants of the families who donated the property for the monument.

MWIKALI GREEN, PARTICIPATED IN BLACK LIVES MATTER PROTEST LAST YEAR: There's a lot of pain in the statue -- in the bottoms half, especially now. There's a lot of words in there.

JOHNS (voice-over): But today also renews conversations over whether removing Confederate statues is an attempt to rewrite or even erase the United States' troubled racial history. At the end of the day, the statue and its removal equally symbolic. The old Richmond coming down and the new Richmond ascendant.

GREEN: This is a very powerful place now. It's transformed into a powerful place.

JOHNS (voice-over): Joe Johns, CNN, Richmond, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JARRETT: Joe, thank you.

Well, the wait is finally over. The NFL season kicks off tonight with the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Bucs hosting the Dallas Cowboys.

Andy Scholes is live in Tampa with a preview. Hi, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, good morning, Laura.

So, fans here in Tampa and football fans everywhere have been waiting for this day. The NFL season is finally here and you have more than 65,000 fans here at Raymond James Stadium for this opener. They're all going to get to watch the Bucs unveil their Super Bowl banner as they begin their quest to repeat as champs. No team has ever been more ready to repeat in NFL history.

Tampa Bay, the first team ever in the salary cap era to bring every single starter on offense and defense after winning the Super Bowl.

Tom Brady is 44 years old now and he said this season is going to be even more challenging than last season because of where we are as a country dealing with COVID.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM BRADY, QUARTERBACK, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: We're certainly at more risk this year than we put ourselves in last year. I mean, just look at all the different things that we're doing differently from last year at this time.

So I definitely say the risk is up for everybody. It's just kind of our reality. So hopefully, we can just navigate it as best we possibly can. I know every team is dealing with the same stuff.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: All right, the U.S. men's national team, meanwhile, badly needed a positive result in their World Cup qualifier against Honduras last night. It wasn't looking great, down one to nothing at the half. But the U.S. turning it on in the second half, scoring four unanswered goals to go on to win 4-1. And after tying with El Salvador and Canada, this is one they really needed to win.

World Cup qualifying continues next month.

At the U.S. Open, top seed Novak Djokovic now two wins away from becoming the first man to win all four majors in the same year since Rod Laver back in 1969. Djokovic dropped the first set against Matteo Berrettini in the quarter-finals, but he then cruised through the next three to advance to the semis.

Next up is Alexander Zverev, who beat Djokovic last month in the semi- finals at the Olympics, ruining his golden slam, big.

All right, finally, Derek Jeter enshrined into the Baseball Hall of Fame yesterday. Jeter said his goal with the Yankees was to win more than anyone else, and he added that they did. And he said playing shortstop for the Yankees was one of the greatest honors of his life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEREK JETER, BASEBALL HALL OF FAMER: It's more than a game in just a sense. No, the greatest people -- employers in this game -- the Hall of Fame family, they're watching. So I wanted their approval.

During my career, I wanted to make Mrs. Robinson proud, I wanted to make Hank Aaron proud. I wanted to make all of you behind me proud. Not in statistics -- proud of how I played the game, how I carried myself, and how I respected the game and those before and after me. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yes, lots of fans there at Cooperstown cheering on Jeter.

Lots of fans here. It's going to be rocking tonight, Laura.

You know, the Bucs are the first team ever to win the Super Bowl in their home stadium, but there was only about 25,000 fans at that game due to the pandemic. The Bucs didn't have a full crowd at all last season. So this is going to be the first time in a long time it's going to be a sellout crowd. And it's going to be a fun night as they unveil their Super Bowl championship banner.

JARRETT: It's going to be a fun night for sure. All right, Andy, don't have too much fun out there. You're still working. Appreciate it. Nice to see you, my friend.

SCHOLES: All right, I'll try.

Thanks so much for joining me, everyone. I'm Laura Jarrett. "NEW DAY" is next.

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[05:59:25]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to viewers here in the United States and around the world. It is Thursday, September ninth. I am Brianna Keilar alongside John Berman.

And we begin with breaking news in the race to vaccinate the nation. This morning, Los Angeles is poised to become the first major school district in the country to mandate COVID vaccinations for students who are 12 and older who attend in-person classes. The district's Board of Education is meeting later today and one member tells NEW DAY that the measure is expected to pass.

Now, this would be the most sweeping and aggressive safety measure instituted anywhere in the country and it happens to be in the nation's second-largest school district.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, this will be a very big deal when it happens, and it does look likely to happen. And we're going to speak to a member of the school board coming up. Again, this could --