Return to Transcripts main page

New Day

Confusion, Anxiety Swirls as COVID Rages Across America; Rep. Mo Brooks (R-AL) Looks to Redeem Himself with Trump Amid Struggles. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired December 17, 2021 - 07:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN NEW DAY: All right. Welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. It is Friday, December 17th. I'm John Berman with Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins this morning. Nice to see you here.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN NEW DAY: Back in action.

BERMAN: Yes, there's a lot going on this morning. On your beat, I should note as well, because the White House has a new series of concerns with this pandemic.

COLLINS: Yes.

BERMAN: This morning, what might be the most complicated moment of the pandemic, not the deadliest, not the worst, but the most nuanced, probably the most confusing and I would say the most challenging.

So, we are seeing huge increases in the number of coronavirus cases. And that in itself is causing major reactions. A new group of colleges and universities have shifted their classes online. Broadway canceled performances, one just minutes before the opening curtain. Everyone was seated already. There are new outbreaks in post pro-sports. The leagues have postponed games. The NBA and NFL updated protocols for the holiday season, on the one hand, issuing new mask restrictions, new mask requirements and the like, but on the other hand, speeding up the time that asymptomatic players can get back to the field or courts after testing negative.

And then companies are cracking down on the unvaccinated, New Orleans this morning becoming the first public school system in the nation to mandate vaccines for children ages five and up.

COLLINS: And that is huge for those parents there.

And so this morning, when you look at this and all these developments John just told you about, here are where the numbers are, because the U.S. is averaging 119,000 new cases each day, that's 40 percent higher than where we were just a month ago. Coronavirus hospitalizations are also 40 percent higher and more than 67,000 people. Right now, ICU beds are 78 percent full and one in five of those patients has COVID. Nationwide, 1,326 coronavirus deaths are being reported on average each day. The CDC is predicting that hospital admissions could reach record levels in the coming weeks. And with cases and deaths looking a lot like what we saw last winter, it's this time with holiday travel expected to approach pre-pandemic levels.

President Biden, for his part, is appealing directly to those who have not yet gotten the vaccine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: For unvaccinated, we are looking at a winter of severe illness and death for unvaccinated, for themselves, their families, and the hospitals they will soon overwhelm. But there's good news. If you're vaccinated, you have your booster shot, you are protected from severe illness and death, period.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COLLINS: A startling surge in coronavirus cases is giving whiplash to New York City. The positivity rate has doubled in just three days. The rapid surge is alarming city officials who now plan to distribute a million masks and 500,000 homemade tests -- home tests, not homemade tests. The surge plan also includes making testing more easily available with more sites, longer hours.

So, let's get more on all of this CNN's Shimon Prokupecz, who is live in New York, where, as you can see, people are already lining up to get tested this morning, Shimon.

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kaitlan. And people have been online since probably 5:00 A.M. The testing site behind me, the CityMD, opens at 7:00 A.M. So, they should be just about opening up.

But I want to show you the line here. It just continuously has been growing. They are now positioning some of the people here to stand this way on the other side. Probably about 100 or so people on this line already this morning, and they're not even open.

This is just -- underscores the anxiety across the city, as you said, seeing this rate double in three days. When you look at the numbers, the city putting out some numbers yesterday saying that, on December 9th, we were at 3.9 percent, and then by December 12th, we were at 7.3 percent.

[07:05:00]

So, there is growing concern. As you said, the city, they are going to issue masks. They're also going to give people tests that they can do it at home.

It is also causing problems across restaurants in the city. Broadway shows have had to be canceled, audiences in the seat already waiting for the show to start last night when Moulan Rouge was canceled. So, certainly, there is a lot of growing concern and anxiety across the city as the numbers continue to rise.

I happened to talk to some of the people here standing here in line this morning. Some of them are getting tested because they've been exposed. They were in meetings with someone who came out positive, who tested positive. So, there is concern. So, that is why we are seeing so many people now getting in line really across the city to get tested.

COLLINS: And those are big questions of whether or not do you still have to go and contact trace everyone if you've tested positive and been with someone. What does this look like when it comes to quarantining now? A lot of big questions. Shimon, thank you for being there this morning as that line for testing is only getting longer.

Meanwhile, airports are bracing for another kind of surge of passengers. The TSA is expecting almost as many travelers this Christmas and New Year's as over Thanksgiving when pandemic travel records were set. And at least one airline is adding flights to meet the demand.

CNN's Pete Muntean is live at Reagan National Airport this morning. Pete, I'll be flying into there later today. So, what are you seeing?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kaitlan, things are getting busier by the moment. In fact, United Airlines predicts that the busy period for it starts today and lasts until next Thursday. It actually projects that its numbers will be 20 percent higher than what it saw during the Thanksgiving travel period when we set pandemic-era air travel records. The TSA now projects between 20 and 21 million people will pass through security at America's airports between December 23rd and January 3rd.

Just look back to where we were a year ago. Those numbers on average, we were lucky to see about a million people a day, now about 2 million people a day. So, these numbers twice as big is what we saw during the depths of the pandemic.

The real question is whether the omicron variant will have a real impact on these numbers as these infections go up. Airlines say they have seen a bit wavering in booking. United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby says, yes, cancelations have gone up but not nearly as bad as when the delta variant struck earlier this summer. Here is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT KIRBY, CEO, UNITED AIRLINES: 2022 is still going to be a recovery year for the industry, because, you know, we're not -- COVID isn't over yet. COVID is never going to be over. But it is probably still in the pandemic phase instead of the endemic phase.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: Something real interesting here, Kaitlan, the CDC is giving out at-home test kits to international travelers as they arrive into the United States. It says it is imperative for them to get tested three to five days after they arrive in the country. Just a trial period for now at a few different airports Chicago, Minneapolis, Miami, Dallas, Ft. Worth, and says that could be expanded.

But the big message here from the TSA is to mask up because of the pandemic, bring a lot of patience and a lot of flexibility. If you haven't booked your travel already, you may want to consider booking on Christmas Day itself. That's when numbers are projected to be the lowest, Kaitlan.

COLLINS: I'll keep that in mind. And think about the testing is fascinating because, of course, you've seen this and this is something they have not done previously. Now, they are trying this. But it's imperative they say to get tested after you get back from an international flight but it's not yet required.

Pete Muntean, thank you so much.

MUNTEAN: That's right.

BERMAN: Our thanks to Pete.

I want to bring in CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Sanjay, I do think we are in, in some ways, the most complicated part of this pandemic and the most challenging, because there are trends that don't exactly always line up. You're seeing people double vaccinated and boosted, but you are seeing these cases just shooting up. The lines in New York City this morning where the test centers aren't even open and they're around the block. We saw pictures from Florida, where there aren't as many cases of these mobile drive- through testing.

People are concerned. People know people with it and they just want to know what's going on.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I think there's no doubt. And, I mean, we see this -- you know, we saw this after delta when delta started to emerge, there was all of a sudden a clamoring for tests and more people getting vaccinated. And I think the same thing is happening now.

We've never really had a clear denominator because we haven't done enough testing. You remember at some point they were talking about the fact that we need to be doing 20 million tests a day, which I know sounds ridiculous when you hear that. But that was what the sort of path to recovery was that was put out by Harvard School of Public Health. I'm talking last summer even.

So, we're still not there. It's important to get an idea of people who have minimal symptoms or even no symptoms and find out just how much this is spreading. Because the thing about this particular variant, I think, that is becoming clear, is it's really contagious.

[07:10:03]

I mean, people that got away with things, were careful but maybe not as careful as they should be, it's going to be tougher to get away with omicron. We don't know and hopefully it's not as severe as previous variants. I think some of that data still to come out. Because when we see what happens in nursing homes, long-term care facilities, I think that's going to give us a better idea.

So far, it's been primarily younger people who have been testing positive or as part of surveillance testing, like in professional sports. But I think there's still a little bit to learn about this.

COLLINS: And Dr. Fauci said he does expect this to become the more dominant strain in the United States, which right now is delta. But he said he does believe it's a matter of time before it's omicron.

And so, I wonder, are we at this point, even though we have been living through this pandemic for so long now, Sanjay, do you think we're doing enough testing across the U.S. to actually get a good understanding of how much omicron is in the U.S.?

GUPTA: I don't think so. I mean, you know -- and that's, I think, been one of the real shortcomings. I mean, leave aside the beginning of this pandemic where there were problems with the initial test rollouts in the CDC. That happened. That was a long time ago.

Why we haven't been able to catch up and be able to, as people like Michael Mina have been suggesting, even to have people be able to test every day in their home, to be able to do an antigen test or something like that. And if you are testing frequently, you really improve the accuracy of these tests to get an idea who is contagious and who is not. I mean, that is part of controlling a pandemic, and even being able to report those results.

Like people can do these at-home tests. I have at-home tests. They are they are sometimes hard to get. They are intermittently in short supply, but if you can get them, but then they're not reporting. So, hopefully, people are taking those test results and doing the right thing. But it is still a big mish-mash, Kaitlan.

BERMAN: Sanjay, I want to talk about your special, which is a different subject in a second. Very quickly, though. The NFL instituting some new rules, which I think are interesting and speak to the moment we're in. On the one hand, all kinds of new restrictions are going back to masks and you can't travel out of your hotel. You have to be extra careful in many ways, but on the other hand, making it easier to get back on the field if you are an asymptomatic positive.

Explain -- it may sound like they are incongruous congress, but maybe not.

GUPTA: Yes. I mean, I spent a lot of time talking to what folks at the NFL, including Dr. Allen Sills, who's the CMO, Chief Medical Officer. And what is interesting is that they did learn a fair amount about when the virus is most likely to spread in those situations. And it was meetings, that they were doing greetings, when people were actually greeting each other, eating. That is how Allen sort of put it together. On the field itself, what they were finding was there wasn't a lot of viral transmission that was going on, in part, because, again, you think about this virus like an aerosol. You really should think of this as an airborne thing and those sorts of settings where people were playing outside. There was a concern earlier on that because of the close proximity of the players that there would be a lot of viral transfer, but there wasn't.

So, I think they are focusing on the big areas where the virus is likely to transfer. And also they are doing a lot of testing, back to the original point. They are getting an idea when people are not only testing positive but when they're becoming contagious. So, there's going to be a lot of people who are probably going to be sidelined literally because of that. But that's how at least the NFL and the NBA, to some extent, have chosen to approach this.

BERMAN: So, Sanjay, talk to us about your special, the next episode of Weed series. This is Weed 6, Marijuana and Autism. It airs Sunday night. It's really important.

GUPTA: Yes. Look, I've been reporting on cannabis and its medical applications for over ten years now. And it's been a real journey. I didn't really think that there was a lot of merit to this more than a decade ago. But as I've learned more and more, it's really been fascinating what cannabis can do as a medicine and what it can specifically do for the brain.

So, quickly, 14 states allow cannabis to be used to help treat severe autism. And when I say severe autism, I mean, people are self- injurious, causing self-harm. The clip I'm about to show you is going to be tough to watch. I'll warn you ahead of time. But keep in mind as you watch this that this family tried everything they could for their 14-year-old daughter over the years. And then they finally, in a very restrictive state of Texas, landed on what you are about to see here. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA (voice over): What you're watching in real-time is what happens when Kara Zartler (ph) needs to be rescued by cannabis. It's hard to watch, but the Zartler's (ph) want you to see this. The repetitive hitting associated with her severe autism seems to vanish as she inhales the cannabis vapor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just be calm.

[07:15:00]

GUPTA: Her mind and body seem to slowly relax and calm, something no other medicine could do for her.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't tell her physicians until she was 14. I took her medicated to her neurologist, and he sat there in awe and said, I'm not going to chart this. This won't go in her chart. But I think if you have this positive of a result, you need to continue with this medicine for her. GUPTA: A medicine that keeps Kara from hurting herself but is also illegal in Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GUPTA: So, I'll just tell you, you know, it's interesting, people will look at these stories. And, again, it's tough. I mean, you think about your own kids. But these are not just anecdotal stories. There's a lot of children who are now part of these clinical trials where they are doing randomized trials, they're following the kids and they're starting to get some really interesting data. They have been doing this in Israel for some time. I speak to researchers over there who have some new data that we're going to present in the documentary.

Also, again, these parents tried everything, including powerful psychotropic drugs. Kara's mom told me that, at one point, she was getting a dose high enough for someone who weighed close to 1,000 pounds. So, it's tough. It's heartbreaking for these families. But in this case, they have found something they think works and they think that this is more than just a placebo effect.

COLLINS: It's just fascinating. And added struggle for those parents is having to deal with states where it is illegal. Dr. Sanjay Gupta, thank you.

GUPTA: Thank you.

COLLINS: On Sunday, you can Dr. Sanjay Gupta for a look at how some families with autistic children are finding hope in cannabis. And safe for some, hope comes at a pretty great risk. This new CNN special report, Weed 6, Marijuana and Autism, begins at 8:00 P.M.

We also have new CNN reporting on Congressman Mo Brooks, why he is looking to redeem himself with former President Trump just as his Senate campaign in Alabama is struggling.

And ahead, the RNC has agreed to foot a huge amount of the former president's legal fees as he is fighting his New York investigations. We go behind this incredibly unusual arrangement.

BERMAN: And the FDA announces it will allow abortion pills by mail permanently.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

COLLINS: Just in to CNN, we're learning that Republican Congressman Mo Brooks is seeking to redeem himself with former President Trump as he faces a close Senate race in Alabama, my home state. And we are learning that the former president may have met his leading adversary in the race, Katie Britt, was impressed with her.

CNN's Gabby Orr joins us live. So, Gabby, what are you hearing about the former president's role in this race, where we know he has endorsed Mo Brooks but seems to be cooling on that idea? GABBY ORR, CNN REPORTER: That's right, Kaitlan. He did endorse Mo Brooks back in April, which was actually pretty early for an endorsement in this the Alabama Senate primary. But what CNN has since learned is that back in August when the president visited Coleman, Alabama, for a rally that was pretty much intended to boost Mo Brooks in his primary bid, he actually met Katie Boyd Britt, who is a former Richard Shelby staffer, the retiring senator who has opened up this Senate seat.

He met her behind the stage, he spoke with her and her husband, a former NFL player, for quite a few minutes. And sources described that conversation as brief but friendly. One Trump aide even said that Donald Trump walked away from that conversation, quote, newly impressed by Katie Britt, which is not what the Brooks campaign was hoping for. Remember, that is the same rally where Brooks was actually booed by the very pro-Trump audience for suggesting that they move on from the 2020 election.

And so that pair of episodes has really sowed frustration inside Donald Trump's orbit. The president has complained to allies and aides about Mo Brooks' performance in this Senate primary. He feels that Brooks is not spending enough money, that he has not proved to be as formidable a candidate as he had hoped. And he's been talking very positively about Katie Britt. He has been saying that her fundraising has been impressive. He's been telling allies she was very poised in that conversation.

And so all of these things have led Mo Brooks to shake up his campaign. In the last two weeks, he has gotten rid of two consultants who have been with him since the beginning of his entry into the race and he has added four new staffers, including some who are alums of his 2017 campaign.

COLLINS: And I think the added dynamic, of course, that makes this so interesting is, for those who don't remember, Mo Brooks was obviously there on January 6th. He spoke at the rally on The Ellipse earlier that day. And also former President Trump has kind of gone after Katie Britt. He called her the assistant, I believe, to Senator Shelby in that one statement.

Gabby Orr, thanks so much for the reporting this morning.

ORR: Thank you.

BERMAN: All right. Joining us now is CNN Political Commentator S.E. Cupp and Mara Schiavocampo. She is a journalist and host of the Run Tell This podcast.

S.E., what more could Mo Brooks do for Donald Trump? I mean, he stood on The Ellipse and he said, kick ass and take names there, but now, Trump not so sure.

S.E. CUPP, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. And I'm sure for Trump this is a little personal. But I also -- I'm pleasantly surprised by this reporting. Trump is looking at real things, like her polling numbers and her fundraising ability, his spending, not whether she will go out and call Muslim members of Congress terrorists or whether she believes in Jewish space lasers. I mean, these are real things that matter in a competitive GOP primary race.

[07:25:00]

And to their credit, these two candidates are also talking about issues. Remember those, things like a farm bill, and supporting a gas tax increase, which Katie Britt did.

So, this is all, I think, normal which is weird and abnormal now, for this race to be kind of going through these kinds of issues. I'm impressed for today.

COLLINS: I think Trump --

CUPP: Check back tomorrow.

COLLINS: We will check back. I think Trump has also been burned in Alabama a lot of times when it comes to these Senate races, because I covered (INAUDIBLE) race, he endorsed Luther Strange, who, of course, that didn't pan out. He endorsed Roy Moore. That also did not pan out. And that it delivered the state their first Democratic senator since Richard Shelby and switched parties.

CUPP: So, he's candidate shopping because I think you're right, there is a little -- there was a (INAUDIBLE) after that. I think you're right.

COLLINS: It's fascinating to see. What do you make of --

MARA SCHIAVOCAMPO, JOURNALIST: You also have to keep in mind the only thing Donald Trump hates more than losing is being associated with someone he believes to be a loser. So, the recent polls in Alabama showed that if the election were held today in a head-to-head matchup, Britt would win. And so it is not surprising that you see Donald Trump reacting to that a little bit.

And it does raise questions as to the power of his endorsement. Candidates he endorsed in 2020 did very well but he was also on the ticket then. So, now it remains to be seen how well can that endorsement stand when he is also not running, and there are questions about whether this is a cult of personality. Are people devoted to Trump, the man, or is that clout transferrable to other candidates? And that's --

CUPP: It didn't work so well in those special elections in Georgia.

BERMAN: Getting rowdy at the bar here, by the way. I'm just going to say --

CUPP: I spilled all my vodka. No, it's water.

BERMAN: So, the RNC has decided it is going to pay -- authorize to pay $1.6 million in legal bills for Donald Trump in relation to these investigations in New York State, which have nothing, zero, zilch to do with his time as president of the United States. SCHIAVOCAMPO: Yes. This is really remarkable. I would say this is a bad idea. And if I were a donor, I would have a lot of questions about this. I mean, this just shows that this is not the RNC. This is the TNC. This is Trump's party, because they are paying for the legal bills of someone who is not a candidate for activity that has nothing to do with his time in office that predates him as a politician. And it shows the lengths that they are willing to go to keep him happy because they view him as their cash cow when it comes to small fundraising online when it comes to major donors.

The only question here is how much money are they willing to spend? And just one footnote, I thought this guy was filthy rich. Why can he not pay his own --

CUPP: Well, listen, I think this again speaks to the cult of Trump. How gullible are these people? Are they going to sign over their mortgages to him next? Are they going to get brands of his initials in them? I mean, this is Looney Tunes. But I will say if I'm a Trump donor and an RNC donor, I'm not upset with this, right? If you're -- I would say, 90 percent of RNC donors are donating to the RNC because they want Trump re-elected.

I bet if you ask them, to a person, they would say, they would personally help Trump's legal defense. So, I bet RNC donors believe this is how you keep Trump able to run for 2024, and they're okay with it, again, a cult.

BERMAN: Two very quick things. One, you said TNC. I thought you meant TLC, and I was thinking like, don't go chasing waterfalls or something. So, for a moment --

COLLINS: Also, I would say Trump would love if it were to be renamed to the TNC.

BERMAN: The guy who should be upset is Ron DeSantis. The people who should be upset here are other folks who want to run for president who aren't having their legal bills paid by the RNC.

SCHIAVOCAMPO: Or candidates who need the money now.

BERMAN: Yes.

COLLINS: And this is also a president who, if you talk to his attorneys who have ever worked with him, even before they were in office, there has always been an issue when it comes to the payment factor. So, it doesn't really surprise me when I think that the RNC is now picking up the bill.

CUPP: It sounds like a pyramid scheme. I mean, it really does. You are using the RNC's cash to pay for your fraud legal defense. I mean, the irony is very thick.

COLLINS: I do want to get your take on something else, a new move from the FDA, lifting some of these restrictions on being able to get this abortion pill by mail. This is something, of course, it's a medical abortion is what it is referred to. You have these pills. And now women can get them in the mail.

Of course, this comes at a time when we are seeing the Supreme Court fight play out over those new abortion restrictions in several states, including, of course, mainly Texas. And so what are the pros and cons of what the FDA has done here?

CUPP: Well, I'll say, as a pro-life person, I don't have an issue with making abortion easier. It's legal. And I think that's the law of the land. I think it should remain legal. But I think it should be safe. It's legal. I don't think you add unnecessary barriers to both providers and patients to get it. That's what I am concerned about the safety of do it yourself abortions. And the FDA is requiring patient consent and a physician's prescription, which lets me know there are some risks involved.

[07:30:00]

And the idea that you could have an abortion without being seen by a physician.