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U.S. to Announce Diplomatic Ban of Winter Olympics; Tensions Continue Between Boebert, Omar; Lawmaker Touts Guns in Christmas Card after School Shooting; Perdue to Challenge Kemp in Georgia Governor Primary; School Shooting Suspect, Parents Under Suicide Watch. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired December 06, 2021 - 06:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. It is Monday, December 6. I'm John Berman with Brianna Keilar. And we do have breaking news this morning.

[06:00:08]

Restrictions on international travelers coming to the United States take effect this morning. Everyone has to show proof of a negative COVID test taken within one day of departure. And foreign nationals will have to show proof that they are fully vaccinated.

COVID is surging again in the United States. The average number of daily cases is now at 120,000. That's the highest in two months. The Omicron variant has now been detected in at least 17 states. That has the demand for vaccines spiking.

Scientists are still waiting for conclusive information about the severity of the Omicron variant. In other words, does it make you more sick? Dr. Anthony Fauci says while it's early and things could change, there are some encouraging signs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: Thus far, it does not look like there's a great degree of severity to it. But we've really got to be careful before we make any determinations that it is less severe or really doesn't cause any severe illness comparable to Delta. But thus far, the signals are a bit encouraging regarding the severity.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Now, this morning, we are also watching tensions between the U.S. and Russia rising, one day ahead of the president's highly-anticipated video call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

U.S. intelligence estimates that Russian troop levels on the Ukraine border could reach 175,000 here in the coming months.

And then in Michigan, the parents of the Oxford, Michigan, school shooting suspect are in custody. And we have learned that they are both on suicide watch after being held on half a million dollars' bond each.

Police arrested James and Jennifer Crumbley at a warehouse in Detroit nearly 40 miles from their home after law enforcement spent hours searching for them. Police say a man who assisted the Crumbleys has come forward and is cooperating with authorities.

BERMAN: And major diplomatic news overnight. A diplomatic boycott of the Olympic Games in China.

Sources tell CNN the Biden administration is expected to announce this week that no U.S. government officials will attend the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. That's just a couple of months from now.

The move would allow the United States to send a message on the world stage to China about its human rights abuses without preventing athletes from competing.

Joining me now, CNN political commentator S.E. Cupp. And journalist and host of the "Run Tell This" podcast, Mara Schiavocampo.

S.E., so this isn't a big diplomatic move. It isn't everything the United States could do. The United States could boycott --

S.E. CUPP, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Right.

BERMAN: -- the Winter Olympics in Beijing. The United States is not boycotting, but a diplomatic boycott is a clear signal that China, we do not approve of what you're doing.

CUPP: It is. It's not -- as you say, it's not all, but it's something. And it is registering with China. China has already sort of issued a threat, don't go down this road. China takes this as sort of an affront.

And I think while it's important to acknowledge just how thuggish the Chinese government is when it comes to issues of human rights and the sort of temporary disappearance of that tennis player, Peng Shuai, but also treatment of the Uyghurs and other religious groups.

This is a real evolution for America when it comes to China, especially when it comes to Joe Biden. Back when he was a senator, he was really glowing about the role he thought China would play in the world and America's ability to transform it.

Years later as a vice president, talks I think, very apologetically about China, and in particular, its one-child policy. Telling a group of Chinese people in China, I understand it. I mean, that didn't go over very well here.

And now to a place where Joe Biden is really taking -- you know, holding China to account on these issues have that really long sort of, you know, confused and befuddled and flummoxed American leaders.

BERMAN: Yes, there is bipartisan support for this. CUPP: Yes.

BERMAN: I mean, Nancy Pelosi has pushed hard for this. Republicans have pushed hard for this. Some Republicans are calling for a full-out boycott of athletes also. And this predates, just so people know, this predates the issue with Peng Shuai.

CUPP: Yes.

BERMAN: The tennis player who disappeared and then appeared in that video, maybe under duress. This has much more to do, Mara, with the treatment of the Uyghurs, a Muslim minority, which some people call a genocide, flat out.

MARA SCHIAVOCAMPO, HOST, "RUN TELL THIS": Yes. So the issues that the United States is asking to be addressed are incredibly significant. And it's important for them to be addressed.

And one thing that it is nice to see is the United States take that place on the global stage where they are holding countries to account for these human rights issues.

But I think when we're talking about the context of the Olympics especially, it's important to keep in mind that one of the most important -- one of the most famous Olympic protests in history was Thomas Mick and John Carlos with that black fist in the air in 1968.

So when we're talking about the United States' role in the global community, it's worth noting that there are a number of international organizations that continue to call the United States out on our own human rights abuses, including things like the death penalty, which puts us in the company of Saudi Arabia and Iran; the highest incarceration rates in the country [SIC].

[06:05:13]

So I think if we're talking about our place in the global stage, holding others to account is incredibly important. But directing that same energy at protecting [SIC] the United States' human rights abuses is also important.

BERMAN: Right. First of all, China will absolutely say that. They will say, Well, get your own House in order before you tell us what to do in our own internal politics. That, in fact, is part of their statement: Don't meddle in our internal politics there.

But, again, this is a show that China very much wants to go on without a hitch. It now has a major hitch. And now there will be a lot of focus on what do athletes do when they win a medal? Do they decide to protest? It's a fair question.

CUPP: It is. And it puts them -- it puts them really on the spot. And we saw this in the last Olympics. You know, when you're openly vocal as a government about the host country's human rights abuses, then of course the spotlight is going to be, then, on the athletes who go. And they will not only have to talk about what China has done but what

the U.S. has done. And maybe even be in a position to defend that. And I don't -- you know, I'm not sure that's why a lot of athletes get into the business of being athletes.

KEILAR: Now to the fallout that we are continuing to see from Lauren Boebert's Islamophobic remarks about Congresswoman Ilhan Omar. You know, Mara, we heard from Ilhan Omar taking specific aim at the Republican House leader for not really doing anything about this. Here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. ILHAN OMAR (D-MN): McCarthy is a liar and a coward. He doesn't have the ability to condemn the kind of bigoted islamophobia and anti- Muslim rhetoric that being trafficked by a member of this House.

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Why doesn't he have the ability?

OMAR: Because this is -- this is who they are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: What do you think about that, Mara?

SCHIAVOCAMPO: Yes, so a lot of attention is being paid to the words "coward" and "liar." And that's understandable.

But we do see this pattern from McCarthy over and over again where there's either silence or an extreme delay in condemnation or a very lukewarm condemnation of things that, in the past, in another day and time, would have received widespread condemnation.

I mean, here you have one sitting member of Congress repeatedly and openly referring to another as a jihadi, making up a story where they can imply that they're a suicide bomber. And that does not get widespread bipartisan condemnation.

He either can't, or he won't do it. And the question is why. So does he feel like he has to appeal to these fringe members of the caucus to one day become speaker of the House, or does he think that the fringe actually is more representative of the base than a lot of other people do?

CUPP: I think it's both. And, you know, I think it's incredibly craven and disappointing that McCarthy is clearly very interested in being speaker and therefore doesn't want to tick off this wing.

You know, Ilhan Omar is right. He is absolutely a coward. That's not leadership.

But I will say, and she's correct in her diagnosis of the party and McCarthy and the Boeberts of the party. Completely correct.

But I will say this is not a fight that is good for anyone on either side, in either party. Ilhan Omar, I have long commented on and written about her extensive anti-Semitic remarks, which I think are indefensible and repeated. I mean, as recently as this past June, she was really stepping on it. And offending members of her own party. Jerry Nadler, for example.

These are not, I think, the best advocates for two very important messages about anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. These are very imperfect messengers. And I think both parties should kind of want this dispute to be settled and go away. I don't think it looks good for either party.

BERMAN: Omar says she's confident that Pelosi is going to step in and punish Boebert. Do you think that's true?

CUPP: Probably.

SCHIAVOCAMPO: But whatever the punishment may be in the House, I think this benefits Boebert. I mean, we can look at Marjorie Taylor Greene and the amount of money that she's been allowed to raise and she's raised in the wake of all of this political attention.

And in fact, we saw literally the days after this controversy erupted, Lauren Boebert is posting fund-raising calls on Twitter. So this, I think, will benefit her in the long run because of who she is speaking to.

CUPP: I think it's going to benefit Omar, as well, for her fans. I just don't think for either party it's the best -- these are the best sort of avatars for these conversations.

BERMAN: Congressman -- Congressman Thomas Massie put out his family Christmas card where they're all posing with weapons. You can see it right there. And the -- the line underneath it is basically, "Santa, please bring ammo."

Now, the timing of this when the alleged killer in Michigan, the school shooter, obviously, was searching for ammo the day before he killed four of his classmates, strikes many people, Mara, as just flat-out insensitive.

SCHIAVOCAMPO: So here's the thing. He had every right to post that photo. His family has every right to own those guns. But just because you can do something does not mean you should.

This is a question of basic decency. You note the timing of this photo being posted, just days after teenagers were killed at Oxford High School. Next week marks the anniversary of the Sandy Hook shooting, where 20 children were killed just days before Christmas. What do the Christmas cards of those families look like?

Yet here you have a sitting member of Congress posting this photo with his family in the context of the holiday spirit, asking Santa Claus for ammunition. To call it insensitive would be kind.

CUPP: Of course, it's insensitive. Of course, it's distasteful. All of those things. But I think if you don't like that picture -- and I don't like that picture, and I'm a gun owner. If you don't like that picture, you're probably never going to like that picture. Not just because of the timing. Not just because of the issue of gun violence and gun crime and mass shootings. Really awful. I just don't think you're ever going to like that picture. So I think -- I think we need to be a little honest about that.

But I -- but I also think this is a kind of naked attempt to dog whistle at the crowd that thinks, you know, idiots like the St. Louis gun couple are heroes. Kyle Rittenhouse is a hero.

And I think there is some politics and culture warring going on in this Christmas card. I mean, again, you know, I own guns. And I've occasionally posted pictures of me hunting or whatever. This is a very different thing, I think. This is -- this is political. And a wink at those kinds of crowds.

BERMAN: Brianna.

KEILAR: All right. If you guys could just stand by, Mara and S.E. Georgia's elections are once again thrust into the national spotlight, as former Republican senator and Trump ally David Perdue is expected to announce his challenge to the incumbent Republican governor, Brian Kemp.

Now, this would set up a contentious primary race on the GOP side, so let's bring in Greg Bluestein, political reporter for "The Atlanta Journal-Constitution."

Look, for political observers, this is fascinating. Because Perdue here obviously sees opportunity. Kemp has been targeted by Trump repeatedly. And that guarantees that this is going to be a very, you know, a race full of fireworks.

GREG BLUESTEIN, POLITICAL REPORTER, "THE ATLANTA JOURNAL- CONSTITUTION": Yes. Fireworks might be an understatement. This is going to be an ugly, extensive, brutal race between two iconic figures in the Georgia Republican Party.

David Perdue, a one-term senator whose cousin was the first Republican governor in Georgia since Reconstruction, and Brian Kemp, the first lifelong Republican governor in Georgia history, both with solid bases, both with lots of money, and both with lots of name recognition. And they're -- it's going to be all-out war is what Brian Kemp's camp has even predicted for weeks now.

KEILAR: Yes. A total war, as you write. And for the Republican Party, I wonder what this means when you have these two sides that battled when it came to the big lie on full display.

BLUESTEIN: Yes. And on the one hand, you have a governor who refused to call a special session to overturn Donald Trump's election defeat last November.

On the other hand, you have a loyalist. One of the first U.S. senators to endorse Donald Trump, who has called for more investigation into the false claims of election fraud and has -- and has backed up the former president's efforts to overturn the election. So it's going to be a battle between pro-Trump factions. And something

that really worries Republicans here who want to focus on 2022 rather than relitigate 2020.

KEILAR: And I suspect Trump would not be able to resist the urge to jump in himself on this. But the two camps, as you note, are already jabbing at each other. What are we seeing?

BLUESTEIN: Yes. I mean, the predictions of total war are already coming true. You've already got Brian Kemp's camp essentially blaming David Perdue for all the things Republicans blamed President Joe Biden for. The inflation, immigration problems. You know, what they call runaway government spending. They're blaming David Perdue for this because of his -- his run-off defeat back in January that flipped control of the Senate to Democrats.

And David Perdue's camp is swinging right back, calling Brian Kemp, saying that, hey, if he had focused more on Donald Trump than -- than placating Stacey Abrams, they would never have these problems. So you can see Stacey Abrams, the Democratic candidate, right in the middle of all this, as well.

KEILAR: Greg, thank you so much. Always wonderful reporting from you on Georgia. We do appreciate it.

Berman, I mean, if Republicans are trying to look forward, this is going to make it difficult.

BERMAN: No. I mean, this election is now about one thing, the primary race. I mean, Brian Kemp is a very conservative governor. This is not about policy.

[06:15:03]

Back with S.E. and Mara here. This is about one thing, which is Brian Kemp's refusal to hand Joe Biden's victory to Donald Trump. That's the Perdue platform.

CUPP: That's the platform. It's also about Trump's ego. I mean, you know, this is really remarkable, that you've got a guy, Donald Trump, who lost the House, Senate and White House, deciding that in Georgia and perhaps other places like Idaho, Massachusetts and Maryland -- we'll see -- it's worth risking a Republican incumbent seat to a Democrat to get the guy that you really don't like out.

And, I don't know. I mean, if you listen to what the RGA is saying, Republican Governors Association is saying, they're saying, Listen, we support our incumbent Republicans. We fully intend to re-elect all of our incumbents. Because they know the name of the game is hold those seats.

Donald Trump is saying, Not on my watch. I'm going to spend money to counter that. It's amazing. It's wild.

SCHIAVOCAMPO: And Trump is so upset. And you're absolutely right, everything is about Trump's ego. CUPP: That's right.

SCHIAVOCAMPO: He's so upset he has said he would rather see Stacey Abrams in that seat. And he may get his wish. Because let's not forget how formidable she is. And being -- being -- it's attributed to her, to turning Georgia blue for the first time in 30 years and handing them two U.S. senators, which of course, tipped the balance of power in Congress.

So he may very well get his wish to get Brian Kemp out. I don't know if that means that Perdue is in.

BERMAN: Mara, S.E., thank you very much. Great to see you.

So the parents of the accused Michigan school shooter in custody this morning. Why police suspect they were on the run.

And this morning, key decision point in the trial of "Empire" actor Jussie Smollett, accused of staging his own hate crime attack. Will he take the stand?

KEILAR: And a CEO lays off 900 employees right before the holidays on Zoom. We'll tell you how well that went down.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[06:21:04]

KEILAR: The parents of Ethan Crumbley, the teen charged with shooting and killing four school mates in Oxford, Michigan, have been charged with involuntary manslaughter. And they're currently in jail and under suicide watch, we have learned.

Bond was set at half a million dollars each for James and Jennifer Crumbley. They were captured at a Detroit warehouse Saturday after a brief manhunt.

CNN's Athena Jones is joining us live from Michigan with the very latest -- Athena.

ATHENA JONES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brianna.

It was a stunning development Friday when we learned authorities could not locate the Crumbleys. They were tracked down early Saturday after a tipster spotted them and alerted police.

Meanwhile, since the day of the shooting, a lot of questions have been asked about the school's handling of Ethan Crumbley. We're now hearing the school's version of events.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JONES (voice-over): As the Oxford community continues to mourn the tragic loss of the lives of four teens, the superintendent for the Oxford Community School District has requested an independent security review of all safety practices and procedures in place. In a letter addressed to the community, Tim Throne has provided for

the first time details of the school system's version of events. The superintendent saying the initial review of videos of the shooting shows that staff and students acted swiftly and heroically, preventing additional deaths and injuries.

He also said the shooting began when hundreds of students were in the hallway transitioning from one classroom to the other.

Fifteen-year-old Ethan Crumbley is facing 24 charges, including terrorism, murder and other counts.

As for Crumbley's parents, the superintendent said they did not inform the school district they had recently purchased a gun for him and that he had access to it.

Jennifer and James Crumbley were captured at a Detroit warehouse early Saturday morning. This exclusive CNN video shows the couple being taken into custody after a tip led police to the building.

Their attorney said the couple had every intention of turning themselves in.

SHANNON SMITH, ATTORNEY FOR JAMES AND JENNIFER CRUMBLEY: We're in contact with our clients. They -- they were scared. They were terrified. They were not at home. They were figuring out what to do, getting finances in order.

JONES: In the latest twist, a 65-year-old Polish immigrant has identified himself as the person who police say helped the fugitive parents into the building, where they were arrested.

In a statement released by his attorney, Andrzej Sikora says he knew the Crumbleys were using his work space but did not fully understand what was going on. The statement also says that Sikora voluntarily contacted authorities to provide information, and he is fully cooperating with law enforcement to assist in their investigation.

No criminal charges have been announced against Sikora.

As for Jennifer and James Crumbley, they are now in the same county jail where their son is being held, on charges of murdering four classmates: Madisyn Baldwin, Tate Myre, Hana St. Juliana and Justin Shilling.

The Crumbleys were arraigned by video conference Saturday morning and charged with four counts of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the deadly shooting. The couple has entered "not guilty" pleas to all the charges.

Citing a potential risk, a judge has imposed a combined $1 million bond for both of them. And they'd have to post that full amount.

An Oakland County prosecutor also stressed the seriousness of the charges. KAREN MACDONALD, OAKLAND COUNTY PROSECUTOR: Your honor, this is a very

serious, horrible, terrible murder and shooting, and it has affected the entire community. And these two individuals could have stopped it. And they had every reason to know that he was dangerous, and they gave him a weapon. And they didn't secure it. And they allowed him free access to it.

JENNIFER CRUMBLEY, MOTHER OF ETHAN CRUMBLEY: I'm Jennifer Crumbley.

JONES: But attorneys representing Jennifer and James Crumbley say the couple had the gun locked up and that their son did not have free access to it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JONES: And one more thing about that gun. The school superintendent writes that Jennifer and James Crumbley did not inform the school district that their son had access to a gun or they had recently purchased a firearm for him.

What is not clear from the superintendent's letter is what kind of questions school officials asked the Crumbleys about Ethan's access to a gun -- Brianna.

[06:25:07]

KEILAR: All right. Athena, thank you for that.

We're going to speak live with that prosecutor who you saw there on that Zoom court hearing in the 8 a.m. hour.

We do have some brand-new data on the effectiveness of mix-and- matching Johnson and Johnson's booster with Pfizer's vaccine.

BERMAN: And a man walks into a vaccine clinic with a fake arm. This is not some Henny Youngman joke. The latest outrageous way to try and cheat the vaccine rules.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BERMAN: So new this morning, demand for COVID vaccines in the United States rising sharply. It comes as more Americans are becoming eligible for booster shots and concerns are growing over the Omicron variant.

CNN's Elizabeth Cohen joins us now. Good news that more people are getting vaccinated, Elizabeth.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: It is good news. It's unfortunate that it took the fear of a mutation --