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Interview With Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg On Biden Administration's Trucker Shortage Plan; Dallas Non-Profit Helping Refugee Women Thrive; Interview With Rep. Elissa Slotkin On Michigan Gun Safety Lapses. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired December 16, 2021 - 07:30   ET

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

[07:30:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Just in, moments ago, the White House announced a new plan to train, recruit and retain thousands of trucker positions as part of the efforts to reduce the supply chain crisis, slowing the shipment of goods around the world.

Joining us now is Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.

Mr. Secretary, thank you for being with us.

What exactly is this plan and why is it needed?

PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: So this is needed because it's a very important part of addressing supply chain issues. As you know, we have seen supply disruptions since the beginning of the pandemic. We have been working on them since the beginning of this administration.

Now a lot of the attention is on what's going on with the ships and the ports. We have been doing a lot of work there. But a lot of the issue has to do with trucking capacity in all parts of the country.

Remember, these truck drivers are the definition of essential workers. You can't do that job from home. You can't do it over Zoom. And we have absolutely depended on them to get everything from vaccine supplies to Christmas presents where they need to be.

But we are at a moment where we just don't have the trucking capacity that we need. So we're teaming up with the Department of Labor, taking a number of steps across the next 30, 60, 90 days and beyond.

In the near term, a lot of it is about taking down some of the red tape that gets in the way of people who want a career in trucking, being able to get tested for a commercial driver's license, for example. In the longer run, frankly, we need to do more to make this a more secure, well compensated and well respected job. And we will be looking at that, too.

BERMAN: That is one of the big problems here. A lot of the writing and research over the last year has been the issue is retention. It's not new hires, it's retention. Truckers don't want to stay in the job. They may have better opportunities as this economy recovers. BUTTIGIEG: Yes, we've got to make sure this is a good job, that gets

the recognition and the compensation that it deserves.

For example, a lot of times when truckers are waiting to pick up a load, it can take hours. They're not necessarily paid for that. And the compensation structures are a real issues.

We do have a lot of people willing and ready to join the profession. That's why we are working hard to clear the red tape in the short term. But yes, it will be a leaky bucket unless we do more to make sure that this is a job where people want to stay, to build careers.

That means listening to truckers and what they have to say. We'll be spending more time with them. I'll be virtually joining a gathering in South Carolina today.

Again, this is part of our partnership with the Department of Labor. This is largely about making sure this work pays and is supported.

(CROSSTALK)

BUTTIGIEG: -- down to practical issues, like the availability of parking, of bathrooms. We've got to do better to support these truckers who have supported us through the pandemic and really throughout the economy.

BERMAN: Yes, a lot of little changes really can make a big difference in terms of quality of life.

Another initiative announced by the White House in the last couple of hours has to do with removing lead from water pipes in homes. And this could affect up to 10 million American households.

BUTTIGIEG: Absolutely important to get to work right away on this. This is one of the most important parts of the infrastructure law, even if it's a little bit unsung, because it is not as well understood as roads and bridges.

The bottom line is this: there is no safe level of lead in drinking water for children. It can cause developmental damage that lasts a lifetime.

[07:35:00]

BUTTIGIEG: And I can't think of a better use of a dollar than to invest it in preventing a child from getting lead poisoning.

So what you will see here, largely using the resources made possible in that law that the president just signed, is everything from making sure we're addressing pipes that go to homes to working with schools and making sure there is not lead exposure there, either. This is critically important.

And the president is committed to making sure that we take care of every one of these lead service lines in the country because every parent should know that a glass of drinking water is safe and their child is going to be OK.

BERMAN: We learned overnight, Manu Raju in CNN reporting, talked to senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia. And we learned that the senator does not support, as it stands now, extending the child tax credit unless somehow it is paid for, unless something else comes out, does not support it as being part of the Build Back Better plan.

Your reaction to that?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, we believe in the child tax credit, we believe it's good policy. There is negotiation underway how to get this and the other elements of the president's economic package through.

I believe we will. And I think we will because it is so important to the American people and so important in terms of our economy.

Look, whether we're talking about the child tax credit, the provisions that are going to reduce the cost of child care or something I'm very excited for in the transportation field, which is the reduction in the cost of electric vehicles.

All of these things, reducing costs at a time like this and putting money in families' pockets, especially as we continue to see the effects of inflation, incredibly important and urgent. And I do believe it will get done.

BERMAN: Are you disappointed in senator Manchin?

BUTTIGIEG: This is part of the give and take of the process of negotiating a very large, very complex, very important legislative package. But I think we will get through this. When we do, adding this to the historic effects of the infrastructure law that we are already putting into action, this season of legislative action, I think, will be remembered as one of the most productive and important in modern times.

BERMAN: The CEOs of Southwest and American Airlines testified they weren't sure that -- didn't actually think that masks were necessary anymore in flight. We had the former surgeon general, Jerome Adams, on last hour, who said that was reckless and he was disgusted by those comments.

Your thoughts?

BUTTIGIEG: Well, we will continue to take our cues from what the CDC and other public health experts tell us. We know that masks are an effective means of slowing or preventing the spread.

Look, I think we are all impatient with them. I get that, I feel that. Obviously I travel a lot. But especially at a time when we still have uncertainty with new variants coming and going, it makes sense to err on the side of caution, precisely so that we can continue to have an economy and an aviation sector that's thriving.

You think about how close to the brink the American airline sector came in the early days of the pandemic. We're proud of the action that has made it possible for workers to keep their jobs and for travelers to be able to keep traveling.

But keeping that up means taking those extra precautions. That's why they are there. And of course they are there to save lives.

BERMAN: Secretary Pete Buttigieg, thanks so much for being with us.

BUTTIGIEG: Thank you. Good being with you.

BERMAN: Urban Meyer fired after Jacksonville Jaguars head coach after only 13 games.

Which one of the several scandals sealed his fate?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: And COVID-19 outbreaks throwing a wrench into professional sports.

What is the best way to save the season while also keeping people safe?

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[07:40:00]

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[07:45:00]

KEILAR: Several college campuses closing because of COVID-19, even though the vast majority of students and staff are vaccinated.

Was that the best way to handle this?

Plus what Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping just did to thumb their noses at America.

BERMAN: And Martin Luther King Jr.'s family urging the public not to celebrate his legacy next month. What they are pressing Congress to do instead.

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[07:50:00]

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BERMAN: In this week's "Impact Your World," we visit a Dallas nonprofit that is helping refugee women stitch together new futures in the United States.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) STEPHANIE GIDDENS, FOUNDER, VICKERY TRADING COMPANY: When we take the time to invest in refugee women, we are really investing in the future thriving of our community.

When refugees arrive, they have been through the trauma in their home place. So they need extra resources. And you have to go about that help in a different way.

Vickery Trading Company is a nonprofit social enterprise. We hire refugee women and train them to sew at a professional level, using industrial machines, to equip them with skills that prepare them for the workplace.

And during that training, they are making a line of women's and children's clothes. And we sell that clothing in the marketplace to help generate revenue to support the organization.

We're also providing them with wraparound services, the other skills that they will need to really be self-sufficient here in America.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Good job.

GIDDENS: So English classes, computer literacy classes, mental health services and financial literacy classes.

FRISHIDA HUSSAINI, AFGHAN REFUGEE: After coming here I learned that I can be treated without discrimination. Stephanie and Vickery Trading Company has given me motivation and courage to enter the society, to ensure my talent (ph) and help me to find friends. It is a good feeling.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KEILAR: The shooting at Oxford High School in Michigan that left four students dead and several others wounded has, once again, prompted calls for national legislation aimed at curbing gun violence.

The prosecutor in that case took the rare step of charging not just the alleged shooter but his parents, charging them with involuntary manslaughter for allegedly allowing access to the gun.

Joining us now is Democratic congresswoman Elissa Slotkin. She is introducing the Safe Guns, Safe Kids Act, which would require gun owners to keep firearms away from children and would impose a penalty of up to five years in prison for parents of a child, who injures themselves or others or uses the gun to commit a crime.

Congresswoman, thanks for being with us this morning.

REP. ELISSA SLOTKIN (D-MI): Thanks for having me.

KEILAR: Can you tell us about this bill and also tell us how you plan to clear the almost impossible hurdle of getting 10 Republican senators to support it?

SLOTKIN: Yes. Well, the bill came out of the last two weeks. It has been over two weeks now since the shooting in Oxford. And just being at church services and vigils and funerals and meetings with the community, you know, they're still in shock.

They're still in crisis response but the one thing everyone agreed on is that the parents in this case really, you know, from an outsider's perspective, seemed to abet their child being able to do this, by buying him a gun when they knew he had problems.

I think, you know, one of the things that we tried to do was build a piece of legislation that would be different, frankly, than a lot of other gun legislation.

I'm trying to build it bipartisan from the ground up, build it with the support of law enforcement because the one thing I think everyone agrees on is we should keep kids safe.

And all the bill does is basically say, if you buy a gun, legally, which is your right, then -- and you know that there is children in the home, especially if you're a parent, you have a responsibility to keep that safe and away from children.

That could be a $10 gun lock, that could be a $25 gun safe, that could also be a secured location in your home that children can't get to.

And then if that child, if you leave it wantonly around your house and the child takes it, harms themselves, harms others, commits a crime, you should be held responsible for that. That's what it means to be a responsible, accountable gun owner.

KEILAR: It does seem, if you pay attention to some of these shooting deaths or injuries of young kids, that this happens a lot: there is a gun laying around; a small child gets a hold of it and does serious damage or even kills a sibling or someone they know.

How many prosecutions do you think this would lead to?

How many cases are there of these shootings, where third parties are getting access to guns because it wasn't secure?

SLOTKIN: Yes, I think we have hundreds and hundreds of kids we know are killed each year because of a child getting their hands on a gun and either intentionally or accidentally firing it off.

We know that guns are stolen and used for crime all the time. And so we think it would be impactful. The thing that really affected me in this legislation was talking to our prosecutor in Oakland County, who was able to make this rare charge against the parents.

[07:55:00]

SLOTKIN: Because she has what seems to be a mountain of evidence connecting them to knowing about their kids and knowing about his issues and still giving him the gun.

So you know, not every prosecutor is going to have that. Not every community is going to have that. So we wanted to give some space for a law, so a prosecutor doesn't have so much need for documentation in order to have some accountability for the adults, who clearly failed this child.

KEILAR: It was essentially, it appears, a straw purchase, right?

That he shouldn't have owned this weapon but his father purchased it; the mother talked about it being for the child. there is no safe storage law in Michigan where this happened. We should point that out.

Doesn't that make it difficult to prosecute?

And I wonder how the community, your community, is responding to that?

SLOTKIN: Yes, so actually we have the very similar, almost exactly same law has been introduced by Senator Rosemary Baer, the senator who represents Oxford, Michigan. She coincidentally introduced it this summer before the shooting.

So we're working hand in glove to make sure we have options in the state, options at the federal level. I think it is important to have both because the federal government has special authority over interstate commerce, particularly of weapons.

So we want to make sure we have our bases covered and that's, you know, we all just want to keep children safe, right. There is a special emotional connection when you see children killing children. And I think that's what's sort of keeping us motivated on this.

KEILAR: Yes, look, our hearts go out to your community, as you said. You've been attending vigils and services.

While I do have you here, Congresswoman, I want to ask you about something that has developed, which is that Russian president Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a virtual summit yesterday, a virtual love fest, we could say, because, afterwards, Xi was saying that, "President Putin and I have maintained communication in coordination on major issues to steer China-Russia relations. We firmly support each other on issues concerning each other's core interests and the safeguarding of our respective national dignity. I'm very much looking forward to our Winter Olympics meeting and would like to join hands with you, together for the future," and so on and so on.

What concerns does this raise for you, this overture, this partnership between Russia and China?

SLOTKIN: Well, what concerns me is they clearly did this to irk the United States and to bug us, to, you know, poke us in the chest. And I think it is a little bit childish. They're going over the top.

But we have seen increased cooperation between the Chinese and the Russians, particularly on things like military exercises in the Pacific. We have to watch it.

But you know, I was just in Taiwan over Thanksgiving. The Chinese did not like that. But the president of Taiwan was really inspirational. And she said, look, you know, these countries, they have much bigger

militaries than we do. They have a much bigger force presence, they're much bigger countries than many small countries in the world.

But at the end of the day, people do not want to live under authoritarian governments. They want to live in freedom and they want to have democracy.

And I think that, while they showed this big demonstration of brotherly love yesterday, it is because I think they know that they have got to cling together as some of the only authoritarian places in the world.

And we just shouldn't take the bait. What I do think is we need to make sure that if Russia puts one more foot into Ukraine, we slap them back with serious, serious sanctions and a serious response, even more serious than what is being proposed right now.

KEILAR: All right, we'll be watching for that. Congresswoman, thank you so much.

SLOTKIN: Thank you.

BERMAN: First lady Jill Biden and second gentleman Doug Emhoff in Waukesha, Wisconsin, laying a wreath and visiting the victims and first responders of the November parade attack that killed six people and injured more than 60. CNN's Kate Bennett joins me now.

You had a chance to speak with them.

KATE BENNETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: I did, John. This was a really difficult day. And part of what's going on in the country, we had the president visiting tornado victims, we had the first lady and the second gentleman in Waukesha, a new COVID variant coming. There are lots of things affecting the country,

I asked them how does the country heal if so much is going on?

And here's what the first lady said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JILL BIDEN, FIRST LADY OF THE UNITED STATES: And Joe was showing up today in Kentucky; Doug and I are showing up here in Waukesha, you know. These are terrible tragedies that have happened and we need to heal our country.

People, they're not only hurt physically but also emotionally. And that's why we came to Waukesha.

DOUG EMHOFF, SECOND GENTLEMAN OF THE UNITED STATES: Yes, I think what we saw here today and in the face of this unspeakable tragedy, this community coming together.

And you could really feel it and nothing to do about politics or anything, only had to do about this community coming together to help each other get through this. But also now, as we were seeing today, to just to heal. So it's inspiring.

BENNETT: You unfortunately are speaking from experience in terms of tragedy.