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New Day

Salim Abdool Karim is Interviewed about the new Variant; Patriots Win Sixth Straight Game; Louis Vuitton Designer Dies of Cancer; Allyson Finch Wilson is Interviewed about Dave Chappelle. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired November 29, 2021 - 06:30   ET

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

[06:30:00]

FRED GUTTENBERG, FATHER OF PARKLAND VICTIM JAMIE GUTTENBERG: The day I was planning Jamie's funeral. In fact, while we were picking out her casket, we got a call from the FBI letting us know that they had determined they had made a tragic mistake. Just approximately 30 days before, they received a very credible, a very specific tip about what was going to happen. And it did not get followed up on. And I literally learned this news while picking out Jaime's casket.

I said to the person on the other end of the call, (INAUDIBLE) you need to tell me (INAUDIBLE) my daughter would be alive today? And that person said, I'm afraid so.

We can't make mistakes, Brianna. I -- we live in a world now where this is going to happen again. We know it. It's foreseeable. We can't allow these mistakes to happen. And the time has come for everybody to do everything they can to stop the next shooting.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And as you're fighting for accountability, Fred, we're going to see sentencing beginning for the gunman in January. What -- what do you want to see?

GUTTENBERG: I want to see him removed from this earth the fastest way possible. Whether that's through a death penalty conviction or time in a prison with the general population. But he serves no useful purpose, and I'd like to be able to move on from ever thinking of him again.

KEILAR: Fred, thank you so much for being with us this morning. And, look, you were on my mind this holiday. I know that every holiday is tough and this is a tough season for you and the other Parkland families. Thank you for being with us.

GUTTENBERG: Thank you, Brianna.

KEILAR: Coming up, scientists across the globe racing to learn more about this new omicron coronavirus variant. The doctor who's known as the Fauci of South Africa is going to join us next.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And a college student dead after participating in what's being called an underground fight club. What the university knew about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:36:31]

BERMAN: This morning, scientists scrambling to learn more about the new omicron variant of coronavirus, which was first detected by health officials in South Africa. More than 44 countries, plus the United States, are restricting travel from South Africa and seven neighboring countries.

Joining us now is the co-chair of the South African Ministerial Advisory Committee on Covid-19, epidemiologist Professor Saleem Abdul Kareem.

Professor, thank you for being with us this morning.

Look, the world is waiting on the answer to three huge questions about this variant. Is it more transmissible? Is it more virulent? Does it evade vaccines? I'm hoping you can let us know where you are on these things starting with transmissibility.

SALIM ABDOOL KARIM, CO-CHAIR OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN MINISTERIAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON COVID-19: Good day, John.

You've touched on really some of the critical issues we're trying to understand. The reality is we've only known about this virus for just over a week. So we don't really have the kind of data required to answer those questions definitively.

However, there are things we can access, and we can extrapolate based on the mutations that are present in the virus. So while we don't know this for sure, we can expect certain characteristics in this virus.

And how will we know that? Well, put very simply, this new variant, omicron, has mutations that are common to the other four previous variants of concern. So it has mutations that are similar to the delta variant. So we are expecting it to transmit faster. And based on the early evidence we're seeing in South Africa, it's certainly transmitting faster than the delta variant. And based on what we've seen with the overlap with the beta variant, we are seeing some evidence of immune escape from antibodies. There will probably be some partial escape. And that's, you know, what we are expecting.

The data for that to confirm exactly those points that I've raised probably take another two to three weeks.

KEILAR: I wonder, Professor, when it comes to symptoms and also it comes to groups who may be particularly vulnerable to this, are you seeing anything different with this variant compared to others?

KARIM: The show (ph) of clinical presentation is a bit more difficult to, you know, pen point. And this morning we had a conference call with a group of clinicians who have seen patients. And they made two points that were very interesting.

The first is, the clinical presentation is like every other patient they've seen with Covid. There's been nothing different. And the second is that the -- the -- what they are seeing are largely younger people. But that's to be expected because we have much higher vaccine coverage in the older people. We have a much lower vaccine coverage in younger people. So that's just to be expected.

I think at the heart of it we need to be careful that we don't, you know, presume what the likely clinical picture is based on what's coming in to doctors right now. We need a much more broader picture because it's too early to see the very severe cases. Those normally occur, you know, a week, two, three weeks later. So, we still have to wait to see that.

It should be pointed out that viruses generally, to be successful, will develop the ability to spread faster and escape vaccine immunity and natural immunity, but it will generally tend to become less severe because the more severe they become, the less they can transmit because people get sick and go to the hospital or stay at home.

[06:40:14]

So having people who are less symptomatic is actually good for the virus.

So, in that way, we're not expecting, you know, it to differ that much clinically. But the data is still to come.

BERMAN: Yes, theoretically, these viruses mutate away from lethality because they don't do well if they kill their host.

KARIM: Exactly.

BERMAN: I just want to reiterate something you said. As of now, people are not preventing (ph) any different or more severe symptoms, but it's too early to read too much into it. That's one of the things you want to watch going forward.

Professor, what's your feels on some of the travel restrictions being put in place by many countries around the world? How effective is it, do you think, to put these restrictions in place?

KARIM: Well, firstly, it's outrageous that, you know, South Africa and southern Africa is being punished for having good surveillance and, you know, ensuring that we wanted to be completely transparent and to share this data with the rest of the world as soon as we knew it and confirmed it.

If you think about, you know, what we've experienced with the delta variant, within a matter of three weeks, it was in over 53 countries. So it's going to become superfluous and irrelevant to try and block travel from, you know, a few countries because it will be spreading in many other countries.

Indeed, by the time we got to know about it, which was pretty quickly given that the first patient was probably in our system, is at about 9th of November, that we're looking at transmission has probably seeded itself in most countries. So this kind of early knee-jerk reaction to block travel is probably just going to slow the seeding slightly at best but will probably have little, if any, impact because we already have a really good approach to preventing the spread of the virus through air travel and sea travel. And that really involves the five key components, you know, insure that vaccinated people are the ones traveling, that they have a negative PCR test, they are asymptomatic, they wear their masks in the travel, and they are tested on entry. Those things, you know, will sift out 99.9 percent of the cases.

KEILAR: Do you know anything, Professor, about the discussions going on between South African officials and the Biden administration? Can you shed some light on that for us?

KARIM: So, I've not been personally involved. But the minister did inform us that he had met with his counterpart, the secretary for health and human services. And part of that was a discussion about what the situation is in South Africa and, you know, our concerns about the travel restrictions that have been imposed.

And I think part of this is just to ensure we keep an open line of communication and that we are haring everything we've done, as, you know, we've always insisted on doing. And that we hope the Biden administration will, you know, hear our voices on this matter. And, in fact, the WHO and many other individuals who have experiences in this level of pandemic spread have pointed out that the, you know, the travel restrictions will have little, if any, effect.

BERMAN: Professor Salim Abdool Karim, we really appreciate your time this morning. We're so grateful for the work you're doing. The world waiting right now to find out much more information. And I know you're helping try to discover that for us. So, thank you.

KARIM: A pleasure.

BERMAN: A stowaway making it from Guatemala to Miami in the plane's landing gear. We haven incredible, new details.

KEILAR: And Broadway stars and fans sing farewell to an icon.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:48:21]

BERMAN: The Patriots win. Tom Brady wins. We all win.

Andy Scholes with more in the "Bleacher Report" this morning.

What a great weekend, Andy.

ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: A great weekend, especially for Patriots and Brady fans like you, John.

You know, the Patriots, they certainly do look good. Second best record in the AFC, now 8-4. Six wins in a row. Could we potentially see a Patriots/Tom Brady Super Bowl in Los Angeles. That certainly would be something. Now, Brady had owned the Colts in his career, 15-4 all-time going into yesterday's matchup. Brady and the Bucs, they were down 10 at halftime. Mounted a comeback thanks to running back Leonard Fournette. Fournette scoring four touchdowns, including this 28-yard run with 20 seconds left to put the game away. Bucs win 38-31. They're now 8-3 on the season.

And check out what happened to Bucs defensive tackle Vita Vea earlier in the game. His helmet kind of got knocked off a little bit and then he got drilled right in the chin and a tooth came flying out. Vea didn't seem too bothered by the hit, though. He was laughing it off, pointing at it on the sidelines.

All right, a stunner in college football. Saturday night, Oklahoma's Lincoln Riley said he would not be the next head football coach at LSU. That's because he's going to USC. Riley, one of the hottest names in coaching, making the announcement yesterday. He had led the Sooners to four straight BIG12 titles and made the college football playoffs three different types.

All right, finally in the NBA, Steph Curry putting on a show against the Clippers. Four quarter, Curry gets hit going to the basket. No foul was called right there and Curry was mad. Got a technical foul. And that fired him up. Curry then scored 13 of his 33 points in the fourth quarter. And after this ridiculous three right here, watch what he does, he gives the technical sign. Warriors win 105-90 to improve to an NBA best 18-2 on the season.

[06:50:04]

And, John, you know, I'm not sure I've ever seen a player give the technical sign and then not get a technical. But props to the official there for not kicking Curry out of the game because he's the best show we've got in the NBA.

BERMAN: He recognized that what he was seeing was brilliance right there.

SCHOLES: Yes.

BERMAN: And did the ref's see him -- did the ref's see Curry give them a "t"?

SCHOLES: He was right next to him. He had to have seen it. But I think it was such a cool moment, kind of just let it go. And that's what they should do.

BERMAN: All right, Andy, thanks so much.

SCHOLES: All right.

KEILAR: Visionary fashion designer for Louis Vuitton, Virgil Abloh, has lost his fight against a rare cancer at the age of just 41.

CNN's Chloe Melas has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHLOE MELAS, CNN NEW YORK: I'm Chloe Melas.

Virgil Abloh, the men's artistic director for Louis Vuitton and the founder of Off White died on Sunday. The acclaimed fashion designer was just 41 years old. According to a message on his Instagram account posed by his family, it read that he had been battling a rare and aggressive form of cancer called cardiac angiosarcoma. LVMH, which owns Louis Vuitton, tweeted a statement about his passing, writing, quote, Virgil was not only a genius designer, a visionary, he was also a man with a beautiful soul and great wisdom. Abloh leaves behind his wife and two children.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Quite a loss.

Also, saying farewell to a Broadway legend. Hundreds of stars and fans gathered in Times Square to pay respects to late musical theater icon Stephen Sondheim. The group included Lin-Manuel Miranda, Josh Groban, Sara Bareilles. Together they sang a rendition of "Sunday" from Sondheim's masterpiece, "Sunday in the Park with George."

Such a beautiful song. Sondheim died Friday. He was 91 years old.

You know, Brianna, you know, people often ask, you know, who was your favorite interview ever, who was your favorite person you ever interviewed. And my answer is always Stephen Sondheim. I had a chance to spend a day with him in his townhouse in New York and it was awe- inspiring because -- I mean he was a genius. He was a true genius. There was no one better. There's a picture of our time on his balcony.

KEILAR: Wow.

BERMAN: There was no one better at doing what he did. He was also so generous. He was generous with anyone who would talk to him. He was generations with generations of people in the Broadway and musical community. We will never see the likes of him again I think it's fair to say.

KEILAR: You know, I will say, I was checking out "Tick Boom," which is newly out about the life of Jonathan Larson. And that generosity that you're talking about was captured in that. Jonathan Larson in the movie, played by Andrew Garfield, is performing his first musical. And he kind of looks up and he sees Stephen Sondheim, who's played by Bradley Whitford, coming into the room. And it's this acknowledgment of, wow, I'd better do a good job.

But also the fact that he showed up to see it. And there's also -- I will encourage people to check out -- there is a voice mail that is left from Stephen Sondheim. I didn't realize this until this morning. It is Stephen Sondheim himself. He asked Lin-Manuel Miranda, who directed the movie, if he could go back and rerecord it because he didn't think it was quite right. It wasn't quite in his voice. And Lin-Manuel Miranda welcomed that. And it was a -- you know, it's a beautiful kind of last tribute of the passing of a generational baton. BERMAN: It's so funny he wanted to re-record it.

Sondheim was still talking to me about lyrics he wrote for "West Side Story" that pissed him off, that he wished could have been better. The greatest musical of all-time, probably, was some of the greatest lyrics ever and he was mad 50 years later that he didn't do a better job about it.

One last story. I saw his piano. He had a rhyming dictionary next to his piano. And I said, you know, you're Stephen Sondheim. I mean you need a rhyming dictionary. He goes, look, we all need help sometimes, which I thought was wonderful (ph).

KEILAR: Love it.

BERMAN: All right, new controversy surrounding Dave Chappelle after he got into a heated exchange with high school students. We're joined by one mother who said she was shocked and appalled by what she saw.

KEILAR: And global markets bracing for impact after the new Covid variant sparked the worst day for Wall Street in a year. What this could now mean for the economic recovery.

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[06:58:32]

KEILAR: Dave Chappelle is at the center of new controversy after a recent surprise visit to his high school alma mater, the Duke Ellington School of the Arts here in Washington, D.C. Chappelle took questions from students about his recent comedy special "The Closer," which many have criticize as transphobic. Things became rather heated during the Q&A with one student telling insider.com that Chappelle ignored their concerns and talked over them, describing it as a, quote, grotesque display of ego and narcissism.

Joining us now is the mother of that student and an alum of Duke Ellington herself, Allyson Finch Wilson.

Allyson, thank you so much for being with us.

I mean first we should mention, your son is not here with you, and that is for a reason. Tell me.

ALLYSON FINCH WILSON, PARENT AT DUKE ELLINGTON SCHOOL OF THE ARTS: Well, yes. He's gotten a number of threats from seniors at the high school and then he follows a lot of Instagram handles that are featuring this. And in the comments of those posts are hate directed at students who are against -- well, they're not even really against Dave Chappelle, but against the theater being named after Dave Chappelle. And so he's had a lot of anxiety and he's been really worried about it.

KEILAR: You know, understandably. So, what did he tell you about what happened? WILSON: So, he called immediately after this assembly, and he was just

talking really fast and he was like, I can't believe what I just witnessed. I -- that a grown man would treat kids this way. He said --

[07:00:01]

KEILAR: What did he -- what did he say to them?