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Biden to Visit Kentucky; Fraud Probe into Trump; Fed Meeting is Consequential; Child Tax Credit Could End. Aired 6:30-7a ET

Aired December 15, 2021 - 06:30   ET

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

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[06:32:17]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: President Biden will be in Kentucky later today to survey the damage from those deadly weekend tornados that have left behind so much devastation and despair as many Kentuckians are now looking to start over and rebuild.

Meanwhile, at a totaled candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, there are allegations that the company put employees in harm's way.

CNN's Nick Valencia is joining us live from Bowling Green.

So, Nick, just tell us what one employee is saying and also tell us what we should expect as the president visits.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Brianna.

Yes, President Joe Biden is expected to arrive at a state that was ravaged by a swarm of tornados Friday night into Saturday morning. He plans on spending the day on the ground in western Kentucky, which was the hardest hit part of the state, surveying the devastation there and speaking to survivors.

And as you mentioned, some of the stories that he might hear are just startling, including a report this morning from a candle factory that was leveled by a tornado where eight people died. And, reportedly, one of those workers was telling CNN that they were going to be fired if they left before the tornados touched down. They spoke to us earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELIJAH JOHNSON, CANDLE FACTORY SURVIVOR: I said, man, are you going to refuse to let us leave, even if the weather is this bad and the tornados not even here yet? So he was like, if you want to decide to leave -- if you want to leave, you can leave, but you're going to be terminated, you're going to be fired.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Did they say, no, we're going to threaten to terminate you if you leave because we think that this is a safety risk and we have to make sure you stay here, so we have to kind of --

JOHNSON: No, sir. No, sir, it was none of that.

TODD: It wasn't that?

JOHNSON: No.

TODD: What you're saying is, they wanted the production, they wanted the work done?

JOHNSON: Yes. Yes, and --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VALENCIA: The tornados that hit Kentucky are thought to be some of the most severe in U.S. history. They have left thousands without power, thousands others displaced, and dozens still unaccounted for. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki says during the president's visit, he hopes to be a source of comfort for those who went through the worst day of their lives.

Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, Nick, we'll be watching that visit. Nick Valencia for us in Kentucky.

And, up next, they say that even your accountant needs an accountant. Well, some also need a lawyer. What a long-time financial advisor testified to a grand jury about being misled by Trump.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: And licensed to get special and unusual treatment. The lengths South Dakota's Republican governor went so that her daughter could get this job.

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[06:38:58]

BERMAN: This morning, New York investigators are looking into whether Donald Trump misled his own accountants to get loans.

Kara Scannell, Laura Jarrett, here with us now.

Kara, you've got the reporting on this. What exactly are they looking into and who are they speaking with?

KARA SCANNELL, CNN REPORTER: Right. So, John, I mean this has been part of this investigation for more than a year, that they're looking at the accuracy of these financial statements that Donald Trump and the Trump Organization had given to lenders and others when they were trying to get loans and financing. So, I mean, the key thing here is, remember, they've already interviewed Michael Cohen eight times. He's the first person that actually went public with this when he testified before Congress. That also prompted the New York attorney general to launch their investigation which then kind of merged in part with the D.A.'s.

So, what we have learned is that more recently that some people who had worked at Deutsche Bank, who were involved in these loans, had been in -- and they've met with prosecutors. Now, we also know that the accountant has met with prosecutors and also my reporting is that they -- he testified before the grand jury in the spring. "The Washington Post" has reported that he returned and was there again more recently for a brief session.

[06:40:00]

Now, that all makes sense because in order to prove that these financial statements -- I mean this is one of the ones that Michael Cohen made public -- to prove that they're inaccurate, you need to look at what the people were told, what the bank lenders were told, the representations they were given, and then also, you know, what the accountants were told.

Now, what's very interesting in this financial statement is that there are two pages of disclaimers here. I mean that makes it a little bit more difficult. This disclaimer says that Trump is responsible for the preparation. Mazars, the accounting firm, says that they didn't audit it. They go on and it includes six paragraphs of ways that this had departed from generally accepted accounting principles. And they also say that a user who had these unrevised financial statements might come to an entirely different conclusion.

So this can cut good for Trump in the sense that his lawyers can argue, look at all these disclaimers. People knew that, you know, you have to take this with somewhat of a grain of salt or, you know, it can cut against him because he doesn't have this, I relied on my accountant defense here. They're not backing what he's saying, you know, so to speak.

So, this is why the investigators have been looking at this and, you know, I don't want to say having a hard time but, you know, if they have had the evidence they would have brought this case. They've been looking at it for quite a while. That's why they're meeting with these people.

BERMAN: Some of the discrepancies, though, were like, this building was 68 stories high when it was really just 58 stories?

SCANNELL: Right. I mean something like that, you have one property that is in one year's financial statement disappears in the next. I mean it doesn't completely make sense. And we should remember, too, is that Donald Trump has been asked about this under oath before in civil depositions. And in those depositions, he has put the blame on Allen Weisselberg, his chief financial officer.

But, at the same time, in the same depositions, he's able to explain why the value went from 20 million on one property one year to 200 million the next year. So it's a -- it's a real, you know, tough situation here.

LAURA JARRETT, CNN ANCHOR, "EARLY START": But part of the reason they might be having trouble is you have to show more than the numbers were off. You have to show an intent to deceive to be legally on the hook here. We know that Trump is notorious for not emailing. We know that he may not even be texting. And so how are they going to get the evidence to show that he had an intent to deceive, or at least his company did. I think that's going to be one of the challenges for him.

BERMAN: And, Laura Jarrett, attorney at law, these two pages of disclaimers --

JARRETT: My official title.

BERMAN: That's right. As far as I'm concerned. Two pages of disclaimers is a lot. I mean that --

JARRETT: Yes. It gives him a ton of wiggle room. And they've already admitted they departed from generally accepted accounting practices, right? So they're going to have to try to find some other little hook here to try to get around. They're going to have to try to find some smoking gun or some cooperator, right? And we already know that the chief financial officer, at least so far, is not cooperating.

BERMAN: The return engagement "The Post" is reporting, though, of the account before the grand jury --

JARRETT: Yes, (INAUDIBLE).

BERMAN: That's -- that's not --

JARRETT: Nothing, yes.

BERMAN: Nothing either. I mean you don't have someone back before the grand jury unless you have to follow up on something.

I do want to ask you, this judge, this federal judge, ruled that the House, the Ways and Means Committee, can get its hands on Donald Trump's tax returns, stay the order while -- while -- you know, to give Trump a chance to appeal.

How -- how important is this given that the New York investigators already have Trump's tax returns?

SCANNELL: Well, the House says that they want it for a different reason. They want it because they were looking at, you know, the -- part of this is their IRS audit, you know, whether auditors could be intimidated because a lot of -- you know, Trump, for instance, has tweeted a bunch. You know, whether someone who is doing this civil audit -- he's been under civil audit for a decade -- whether that person could be intimidated. That's part of the reason. They're looking to say that maybe they need to change the rules around audits and their oversight of the IRS.

I mean it also matters because Congress has, you know, they're curious about what conflicts did Trump have. And we still don't know -- we don't know publicly. We only know from other reporting. And what the investigators find, that won't become public unless there's a case. So there is like this public reason why the House wants to do it.

And there is precedent. They have done it in the past, making tax returns public. JARRETT: But, not, here is a Trump-appointed judge saying Trump is

wrong on the law. Within the first page of the opinion, saying the committee has a clear legislative purpose.

But, even though you have the right committee to get these documents, maybe it's not the most prudent thing to do, he says.

BERMAN: Interesting. Interesting. You know what, and if it's the law, it's the law. And as you point out, that matters in and of itself, even if nothing ever comes of it

SCANNELL: Right. And Trump has already filed his motion to appeal.

BERMAN: Kara, Laura, thank you very much.

So, just in, we're now learning that President Biden is expected to release the secret JFK assassination documents today. The ones historians have been waiting for, for decades. What they're expected to reveal.

KEILAR: Plus, an insurrectionist who's facing the longest sentence yet of those who attacked the Capitol. The unbelievable things that he did to police officers that day and why he's now begging a judge for mercy.

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[06:49:02]

BERMAN: So, no story today will have a bigger impact on your life. The Federal Reserve wrapping up a two-day policy meeting, and it could be one of its most consequential.

Chief business correspondent Christine Romans here.

And you assure me, Romans, this is a BFD.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: A Big Fed Deal, John. A new phase for the Federal Reserve. It flooded the economy with support to keep the coronavirus recession from becoming a depression. Now it pivots to fighting inflation. Inflation running the hottest in nearly 40 years. Americans paying more for nearly everything, food, gas, cars, rent, houses.

Yesterday we learned November producer prices jumped 9.6 percent from last year. That's the fastest increase we've ever seen.

Now, the Fed chief, for months, has called inflation transitory, temporary. Expect that language to change today. And expect the Fed to speed up its so-called taper, ending early its crisis era stimulus so the economy doesn't run too hot.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell signaled as much earlier this month.

[06:50:02]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEROME POWELL, CHAIRMAN, FEDERAL RESERVE: But at this point the economy is very strong and inflationary pressures are high and it is, therefore, appropriate, in my view, to consider wrapping up the taper of our asset purchases, which we actually announced at the November meeting perhaps a few months sooner.

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ROMANS: So, what does that mean? That means the Fed will reduce its bond buying program faster than planned, ending in March instead of June next year, and that would clear the way for the Fed to start raising interest rates next year. Interest rates are currently near zero.

What the Fed does, folks, has implications for everyone. Markets are accustomed to easy money, sending stocks to record highs this year, right? So this pivot could be a headwind for investors. If the Fed tightens too quickly, it could hurt the economy. It could even cause a recession. And for consumers, higher interest rates, right, mean higher borrowing costs for credit cards, for car loans and mortgages.

John, if you've been on the fence about refinancing your mortgage, higher interest rates are coming next year. You need to get that done soon.

BERMAN: Now is the time to do it. In case people missed it at the beginning, Romans, it is a BFD.

ROMANS: A Big Fed Deal. That's right, John.

BERMAN: Christine Romans, thank you very much for that.

Brianna.

KEILAR: I love that.

So, today, expanded child tax credits are coming to an end. Parents are set to get their last payments, unless Congress acts.

BERMAN: And goodwill punting. Actor Ben Affleck getting candid about what he says drove him to drink. Here's a hint, it wasn't the box office bomb "Gigli."

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[06:55:39]

KEILAR: The child tax credit, which currently supports 35 million families, will run out within weeks if the Senate doesn't pass the Build Back Better plan. So what that means is that 10 million children are at risk of slipping back into poverty.

Vanessa Yurkevich is live for us in Morgantown, West Virginia.

So, Vanessa, there are so many families that are relying on these tax credits to put food on the table, especially during the pandemic. And they could see them disappear.

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. And today is the day that they are getting their last child tax credit of the year, and maybe for a while if Congress does not act. This is a critical moment for millions of families, especially for families in states like West Virginia, right here, with has one of the highest poverty rates in the country.

We spoke to families here who say they hope that Congress is listening.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would like a waffle, please.

EMILY HARDEN, RECEIVES CHILD TAX CREDIT: You would like a waffle.

YURKEVICH (voice over): At breakfast, Jesse and his sister Madison can have whatever they want. But their mom, Emily Harden, says that wasn't always the case.

HARDEN: There were a lot of times where we didn't have, you know, more than a couple of dollars and had to kind of decide, like, I wasn't going to eat so that he could eat.

YURKEVICH: But now the family is on steadier footing, thanks in part to a monthly tax credit, or CTC, from the federal government. This year, families are getting $3,000 per child ages six to 17, and $3,600 for children under six. That's up from $2,000 per child.

HARDEN: It's been a really big deal for us.

YURKEVICH: This single mom makes a modest salary of $34,000 as the pastor of the Church of the Covenant in Grafton, West Virginia. Bills have always been tight and still are, but the $6,600 in child tax credits she's getting makes a difference.

HARDEN: Being less worried about those kind of everyday expenses, which, you know, if you're worried about everyday expenses, you're worried every day, has meant that I feel -- I feel less stressed.

YURKEVICH: But that stress is starting to build again. The Senate must pass the Build Back Better bill by December 28th to continue CTC benefits at the current amounts. Part of the holdup is West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, who has concerns about the overall cost of the bill.

ASH ORR, ADVOCACY ORGANIZER, WEST VIRGINIA CENTER ON BUDGET AND POLICY: We are potentially risking 50,000 West Virginia citizens, our children who are benefiting from the CTC, to either be pushed further down into poverty or actually cross into the poverty line.

YURKEVICH: And across the country it's nearly 10 million children at risk.

ANAN BUTCHER, RECEIVES CHILD TAX CREDIT: Come here. Come to mommy. YURKEVICH: The Butchers, down one salary after Anna lost her job during the pandemic, say it would be devastating to lose the $6,600 in tax credits for their two children.

BRIAN BUTCHER, RECEIVES CHILD TAX CREDIT: The four-year-old and the 15-year-old, they're never going to go hungry. But it's a different story for us. And sometimes we have to make those kind of decisions.

YURKEVICH: Ninety-one percent of low income families use their CTC on food, education and other basic needs.

The Butchers are looking to cut their grocery bill, but with prices rising across the board, it's nearly impossible.

A. BUTCHER: Our food budget, which is pretty low at this point. So I don't see us being able to -- to go much lower with that. It's scary, because I'm -- I'm not really sure what our next step is going to look like.

HARDEN: There's your Santa picture from this year.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, with me and Madison.

HARDEN: And our little Lego.

YURKEVICH: And with Christmas around the corner, these families have been saving. But with next year's child tax credit up in the air, Santa may not be able to deliver on everything this year.

B. BUTCHER: We kind of had like a budgeted set amount. And then we were thinking about, like, what we could actually get them. It's a tough conversation this year.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

YURKEVICH: And it's easy to forget that so many families are still recovering economically out of this pandemic.

And, Brianna, when the first enhanced child tax credits went out in July, in just a few weeks, we saw that family with children, their food insecurity dropped by 24 percent in just those few weeks.

[07:00:03]