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Early Start with John Berman and Zoraida Sambolin

Biden Ramps Up Pressure As Putin Mulls Ukraine Invasion; EU Foreign Ministers Meet in Brussels Over Ukraine-Russia Crisis; Trial Begins for 3 Officers Indicted in George Floyd Murder. Aired 5-5:30a ET

Aired January 24, 2022 - 05:00   ET

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

[05:00:00]

LAURA JARRETT, CO-ANCHOR, EARLY START: Good morning, everyone, it is Monday, January 24th, it's 5:00 a.m. here in New York, thanks so much for getting an early start with us, I'm Laura Jarrett.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CO-ANCHOR, EARLY START: Good Monday morning everybody, I'm Christine Romans, welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. President Biden signaling stiffened resolve in the west escalating standoff with Russian President Vladimir Putin over Ukraine. The State Department now drawing down staff at the U.S. Embassy in Kiev, ordering the departure of all family members of embassy personnel.

JARRETT: Last night, a second shipment of lethal aid arrived in Ukraine, 80 tons of weapons aimed at reinforcing the country's defenses against the Russian forces amassing on its border.

ROMANS: Also over the weekend, top brass at the Pentagon presented the president with options for bolster of U.S. forces in the Baltics and eastern Europe. Among those options, repositioning up to 5,000 U.S. troops.

JARRETT: CNN is covering this story from every angle as only CNN can, with Nic Robertson in Russia, Jasmine Wright in Washington D.C., and Melissa Bell in Paris. But we begin with Nic in Moscow. Nic, good morning. How is the Kremlin responding to all this?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: You know, I think we're going to get an update on that in the next hour or so. The Kremlin's spokesman is due to speak, and there's so much that's happened. You know, Russia has been accused of backing a -- put -- backing a former -- a former Ukrainian member of parliament to become the new leader in Kiev. So, that's something we can expect to hear more about.

But i think, you know, the announcement from president -- the announcement over the weekend that President Biden is considering sending up to 5,000 troops is something that we can expect to hear more about from the Kremlin as well. And we've just heard from NATO in the last few minutes saying they are committing more NATO forces to eastern Europe. The Danish sending a frigate to the Baltic Sea, sending four F-16 fighter jets to Lithuania, the Dutch are announcing that they're going to send two F-35s to Bulgaria in the coming months.

Spain considering sending a Naval vessel and fighter jets as well. So, there's a very robust response coming from NATO at the moment about how it's responding to Russia's continued build-up of troops around Ukraine. Typically, the Kremlin spokesman is quite sort of careful in his language about these things. I don't think we're going to hear heightened rhetoric or threats coming back from the Kremlin. But there's been a lot going on.

The pressure from -- presented from the United States and its allies to the Kremlin and its troop-build-up around Ukraine. That has certainly grown over this weekend.

JARRETT: All right, Nic Robertson, thank you for your reporting on that, Christine?

ROMANS: OK, we're also learning here President Biden could beef up the U.S. military presence in the Balkans and eastern Europe as Russia surges its troops to the Ukrainian border. Let's bring in CNN's Jasmine Wright in Washington. Good morning to you, Jasmine, what do we know about the options the president, President Biden is considering here?

JASMINE WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Christine, it really represents a shift of strategy from this White House moving away from a more restrained stance when it comes to Russia towards a more pressure-filled, hands-on approach. So, that was really crystallized when CNN learned late last night that the president was presented, really discussed options to increase troop levels in the Baltics and eastern Ukraine.

And according to one senior official that was anywhere from 1,000 to 5,000 troops to U.S. allies in that region, in addition to aircraft and also ships. And now this is really important, Christine, because up until now, really the White House's focus of discussion, when it came to consequences if Russia should invade Ukraine, really focused on economic sanctions, something they called overwhelming and severe. But here, we are learning that they are being discussed, new options really.

The president talked about it yesterday -- excuse me, on Saturday in that national security briefing at Camp David which the White House released photos for. And now, that information came after Secretary of State Tony Blinken really issued this kind of grave warning on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" on Sunday. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) ANTONY BLINKEN, SECRETARY OF STATE, UNITED STATES: If a single,

additional Russian force goes into Ukraine in an aggressive way, as I said, that would trigger a swift, a severe and a united response from us and from Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WRIGHT: So, of course, that was Tony Blinken just a few hours before his State Department authorized really non-essential personnel from Ukraine and their family members are able to leave now.

[05:05:00]

Of course, really kind of emboldening and embolizing this real shift of strategy from the White House when it comes to Russia really heading into this critical week.

ROMANS: All right --

WRIGHT: Christine?

ROMANS: Jasmine, thank you so much. Laura?

JARRETT: Also happening right now, EU foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels to discuss this crisis in Ukraine. CNN's Melissa Bell joins us live on that angle. Melissa, what can we expect out of this meeting?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're going to be looking to see what unity Europe has managed to achieve on this question. Because of course, Laura, what we've been hearing from Antony Blinken; the Secretary of State who spoke extensively yesterday was this need for unity, for strength, for unified and strong response from NATO. That unity within NATO depends on the European Union and the unity that it manages to find on this question.

We know that this is a bloc that's been severely divided on the stance to approach to use -- to take toward Russia over these last few months and years. Some favoring dialogue, some favoring strength. That's going to be at the heart of the discussions. Today, they'll be looking at what would trigger sanctions and exactly what those sanctions would be. We know that they've been working on sanctions behind the scenes, remaining very tight-lipped.

Because of course, the idea is that when they are triggered, they come into effect immediately, and that surprise effect impact is crucial to them. EU diplomats really not going very far in telling us exactly what we might hear. We know that Antony Blinken is going to be speaking to them by video conference by the end of the afternoon, after that, we'll hear from the EU's top diplomat about what's come out of the meeting.

And in that conclusion from Josep Borrell, we'll know more about whether the American Secretary of State has achieved in his ambition of seeking unity within NATO with its allies in taking that tough stand towards Russia, specifically, Laura, when it comes to sanctions. JARRETT: All right, a lot at stake here. Melissa, thank you.

ROMANS: So, stepping back here, a Russian invasion of Ukraine would shock global energy markets and potentially raise already high prices around the world, right? The White House working on a global strategy to produce more gas and redirect resources if that happens. The White House talking with countries and companies in Europe, the Middle East, North Africa and Asia. European leaders quite worried that Russia would cut off its gas exports to retaliate against western sanctions.

The Russians of course, are the second largest oil producer in the world behind only the United States. They currently provide Europe with more than 40 percent of its natural gas supply, and a large portion of that natural gas travels through Ukraine, Laura.

JARRETT: Such an important reminder --

ROMANS: Yes --

JARRETT: With just the context there, really key. All right, coming up for you later today, three former police officers in Minneapolis go on trial. A federal civil rights trial in the death of George Floyd. What prosecutors have to prove in that case.

ROMANS: Plus, the new revelation from the January 6 Committee, Bill Barr already talking to them.

JARRETT: And what might be one of the greatest Playoff games in NFL history.

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[05:10:00]

JARRETT: In Minneapolis, opening statements will begin today in the federal civil rights trial of three former police officers charged in the death of George Floyd. Tou Thao, Alexander Kueng and Thomas Kiernan Lane all face life in prison if convicted. Derek Chauvin who was convicted last year of murdering George Floyd has already pleaded guilty to federal charges and will not be a part of this trial.

ROMANS: Let's bring in former prosecutor, Imran Ansari; he's a trial attorney and a legal analyst on the Law and Crime Network. Good morning, thank you so much for getting up early with us. So, you know, Derek Chauvin already convicted of killing George Floyd. Two of these defendants were rookies. You know, I assume they'll lean in on the hierarchy of the situation, right? That he was the leader, Chauvin. What do prosecutors have to prove against these three former officers?

IMRAN ANSARI, TRIAL ATTORNEY: Sure, well, in this case, which is a little different than the state case that these officers are still facing later down the line. Really what prosecutors have to show is what these officers didn't do as opposed to what the officers did do. And by what I mean by that is that prosecutors are going to have to show that they knew that they were not doing something that they had the duty to do pursuant to their jobs as officers.

And that's where they get these federal charges here under the constitution that they woefully deprived George Floyd of his constitutional and civil rights. And essentially, it's going to be just that as you mentioned. Derek Chauvin, he's already been convicted in the state case. He pled guilty in the similar federal case to these civil right charges. And ultimately, it's going to be pointing up the chain of command. These officers are going to be pointing at Derek Chauvin, saying, listen, he was the commanding officer on the scene, we were rookies and we were just following orders. And I think we expect to see that defense put forward by their attorneys.

JARRETT: Imran, I also want to ask you about a very different type of case, a defamation case today in New York. The jury selection begins. Sarah Palin has filed this case against "The New York Times" after the paper incorrectly links this map shown by Palin's PAC to the 2011 shooting of Congresswoman Gabby Gifford. I know you think that "The Times" is actually going to win this case, but it could be ugly. How come?

ANSARI: Yes, see, I think "The New York Times" are going to prevail, that's because the defamation law is pretty solid for press rights, for the First Amendment and the ability for members of the press to speak or publish certain things about a public figure. However, I think it's going to be an ugly battle in court. And I say that because "The New York Times" had it wrong. There's no way about it. "The New York Times" had it wrong as it reported about Sarah Palin and about what -- you know, there were some content put forth by her campaign, by her representatives, and "The New York Times" had it wrong.

[05:15:00]

So, why it's going to be ugly is because we expect that the editorial board are going to be brought down to court to testify. And they're going to have to explain what steps they took in order to make sure that what they published was true. But the constitution, the First Amendment and a case from 1964, which ironically is "The New York Times" versus Sullivan, has given the press a broad leeway in order to publish and put forth certain material.

So, I think it's going to be a win for "The New York Times", but I expect that they're going to be put under the microscope during the course of this trial in terms of that editorial and reporting process.

JARRETT: Right, and of course, publishing something that you know is wrong is very different than sort of a sloppy or reckless mistake. So this will be an interesting one to watch.

ANSARI: Yes --

JARRETT: Imran, thank you so much for getting up with us, appreciate it.

ANSARI: Thanks for having me.

JARRETT: All right, now to this Gonzaga University has suspended season tickets for one of its most well known alums. Hall of fame basketball player John Stockton, this after he refused to comply with the school's mask mandates at home games because of the Omicron surge of course. The state of Washington recently went back to enforcing masking rules and eliminated any eating and drinking at large arenas. And Christine, unfortunately, he has used his platform for a bunch of anti-vaccine nonsense. But the school obviously pushing --

ROMANS: Yes --

JARRETT: Back.

ROMANS: And you know, we won't repeat those things that he says or says he knows here because it's just absolute wackadoodle stuff. But this is consequences, right? You -- fine. You have the right to not wear a mask, but the consequence, you don't have a right to sit there in those season tickets in Gonzaga really deciding that the rules were more important than an out-sized personality.

JARRETT: That's right.

ROMANS: All right, coming up, why Dr. Anthony Fauci now says the COVID wave is going in the right direction.

JARRETT: Plus, could Tom Brady call it a career? Oh, John Berman is not going to be happy! Reaction after a tough Playoff loss.

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[05:20:00]

JARRETT: The NFL's Conference Championships are set after a thrilling weekend with all four Playoff games decided on the final play. Andy Scholes has this morning's "BLEACHER REPORT". All right, Andy, I know Tom Brady fans are happy. I know Patrick Mahomes fans are excited. This is like Christmas morning for you.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Laura, this is the greatest weekend of NFL football -- I mean, ever. It was the first time in Playoff history that four games ended on a game-winning play in the Chiefs and Bills game last night. One of the best games ever, if not the best. So, picking up late in the fourth quarter, Josh Allen to Gabriel Davis for a 27-yard touchdown. Bills take a 3-point lead after this 2-point conversion right here.

But the Chiefs would answer back and they would do it quickly. Patrick Mahomes to Tyreek Hill, he's the fastest player in the NFL. And he did work right here, 64 yards for the touchdown, Chiefs retake the lead with a minute to go, but the Bills weren't done. Allen answers, he finds Davis again, these two hook up for four touchdowns in the game. The Bills look like they had won it at that point. Up three, 13 seconds left, but Mahomes completes two passes.

The last to Travis Kelce, got enough yards for Harrison Butker to make a 49-yard field goal to send the game into overtime. The Chiefs would then win the coin toss and Mahomes leads them down the field and finds Kelce for a game-winning touchdown. You know, lots of people wishing the overtime rules were different. The Bills and Josh Allen never get a chance, Kansas City wins the thriller 42-36 -- a great game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK MAHOMES, QUARTERBACK, KANSAS CITY CHIEFS: To be in this moment in this game against that team and to make a play to walk off a game, that arrow-head, I'll remember this for the rest of my life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Twenty five points scored in the last two minutes of regulation between the Bills and Chiefs. The most in NFL post-season history. All right, Bucs and Rams also playing a thriller just before that one. Tampa was down 27-3 in the third quarter, but Tom Brady, hey, he's been there before. Brady bringing the Bucs back there to Mike Evans 55-yard touchdown. Bucs got within 7, then after getting a fumble, Leonard Fournette scores to tie the game.

But here come the Rams, Cooper Kupp incredible, Matthew Stafford finding him for two catches, the last one, 44 yards right down the middle, set up a game-winning field goal. The crowd at Raymond James Stadium just stunned as the Rams winning that one, :30-27.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MATTHEW STAFFORD, QUARTERBACK, LOS ANGELES RAMS: In my mind, I live for those kind of moments. You know, I would have loved to have been taking the knee up three scores, but it's a whole lot more fun when you've got to make a play like that to win a game and just steal somebody's soul. You know, that's what it feels like sometimes, with that shit now going down, we just had this great comeback, and you get to reach in there and take it from them. That's a whole lot of fun.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCHOLES: Yes, many are wondering, was this the last time we're going to see Tom Brady walk off of an NFL field. "ESPN" reported before the game, Brady undecided on coming back for a 23rd NFL season, and here's what the 44-year-old had to say about his future after the game.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM BRADY, QUARTERBACK, TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS: I haven't put a lot of thought into it, so I'll just take it day-by-day and see, kind of see what happens. Truthfully, guys, I'm thinking about this game, and I'm not thinking about any past five minutes from now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[05:25:00]

SCHOLES: All right, so here's a look at Sunday's Playoff games. The Chiefs are going to host the AFC Championship game for the fourth straight season as they welcome the Bengals to Arrowhead Stadium next Sunday in the NFC. The 49ers heading to L.A. to face the Rams for round 3, San Francisco won both match-ups this season, winners of course, for our Super Bowl LVI on February 13th at SoFi Stadium. The Rams looking to become the second team to play a Super Bowl in their home stadium.

Of course, after the first time last year with Brady and the Bucs winning it, look, I don't know what to say, guys, that was the --

ROMANS: I know --

SCHOLES: Greatest weekend of NFL --

ROMANS: I know --

SCHOLES: Football ever, and you know, it's going to be hard to top it next week.

ROMANS: I know, and that -- you know, so all this whole Tom Brady retirement stuff, the way he performed, the old guy has got it better than anybody else out there --

SCHOLES: Right --

ROMANS: I can just only imagine he wants to come back and do that again, you know? I mean --

SCHOLES: He's going to do it. I mean, I don't think he's going to retire. He's coming back for at least one more season --

ROMANS: The energy --

SCHOLES: He always said 45 years old, you know.

ROMANS: Like that was just unbelievable football to watch. It was just --

SCHOLES: Right --

ROMANS: Unbelievable. All right, Andy --

JARRETT: I love Christine's enthusiasm for this --

(LAUGHTER)

ROMANS: I know, you know, it takes a lot to really get me -- I mean, that was an amazing weekend of football, I've got to say.

SCHOLES: Yes --

JARRETT: Thanks, Andy.

ROMANS: Thank you, Andy --

SCHOLES: All right.

ROMANS: All right, New York's new mayor reviving an old crime fighting tactic after the deadly shooting of a police officer.

JARRETT: And the TV premiere that Peloton probably hopes you'll skip.

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