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New Day

Today, Committee to Show Alleged Links Between Trump, Extremists; Explosions Rock Russian-Held Town in Southern Kherson Region; NASA Unveils Deepest Infrared Image of Universe Ever Taken. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired July 12, 2022 - 07:00   ET

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

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Enough time and people leave him alone so he can do his writing, because his so damn good.

[07:00:04]

MARK LEIBOVICH, STAFF WRITER, THE ATLANTIC: Well, from your mouth, John. And I appreciate you having me on.

BERMAN: Thank you so much and congratulations on the new book. It is wonderful. Thank You For Your Servitude, get it now.

New Day continues right now.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to viewers here in the U.S. and around the world. It is Tuesday, July 12th. I'm Brianna Keilar with John Berman.

And we're starting with new reporting on the seventh public hearing of the January 6 committee which is going to get under way this afternoon. We also have some new details about what the committee is pursuing behind the scenes, a specific December 2020 Oval Office meeting that is looming quite large, a meeting that has been described as insane.

Just hours afterward, former President Trump tweeted, calling on supporters to show up at a Washington protest on January 6th, telling them it will be wild. Committee Member Jamie Raskin said that's the moment that trump became the first president in American history to call for a protest against the peaceful transfer of power.

BERMAN: We expect the committee to try to link this to extremist groups mobilizing around January 6. Also, the committee has suggested they will probe possible links between Trump's circle and some of the extremist groups. One of the witnesses today, Stephen Ayres, a convicted rioter, also a former spokesman for the Oath Keepers will testify.

Joining us now, CNN Senior Legal Analyst and former Federal Prosecutor Elie Honig. Elie, I have to walk to your gravitational force is pulling us over to the wall here. We were talking about what the committee wants to do at this hearing today, the tweet from Donald Trump and how it may have inspired these groups to mobilize around January 6. How and why is that important? ELIE HONIG, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Yes, John. The committee is going to make its argument to the American public today that the one and only reason that that mob descended on the Capitol on January 6 was because of Donald Trump. Here is how Liz Cheney put it. Quote, President Trump summoned the mob, assembled the mob and lit the flame of this attack.

Now, we're going to hear a lot today about this December 18th, 2020 meeting at the White House. Choose any adjective you want, unhinged, wild, dangerous. There are some things we do know, some things we don't know. What we do know is that some of the Donald Trump's advisers, Michael Flynn, Sidney Powell were urging him to do dangerous, wild things, like declare martial law, seize voting machines, using federal agents, appoint Sidney Powell as special counsel.

We also know, however, that some of Donald Trump's lawyers, including White House Counsel Pat Cipollone, were pushing back. Now, we're going to see in all likelihood deposition clips from Pat Cipollone's deposition, which he gave just four days ago on Friday, and I think he's going to give us some more insight into this meeting.

One thing we do know for sure is that just a couple of hours after that meeting ended, Donald Trump sends this fateful tweet, the be there, will be wild, tweet. And, by the way, this is why January 6 has become January 6. So, it's going to be interesting to learn is there any connection between that tweet and the meeting that preceded it?

BERMAN: Can I ask, Elie -- again, we've heard that all morning long, and that's in the reporting overnight. Why would that be important to tie the meeting to the tweet, to the language?

HONIG: Because there could be discussion about, hey, we're going to have this rally on January 6, there could be something that led Donald Trump to tweet that it will be wild.

And, by the way, it wasn't just that tweet. Donald Trump, over the next several weeks, tweeted and re-tweeted about ten times, hyping up this rally like it was some kind of heavyweight boxing match. And, finally, of course, the rally happens. Donald Trump makes his infamous speech, fight like hell, we're going to walk down to the Capitol.

And we now have new context on this, because, remember, Cassidy Hutchinson testified that Donald Trump right before he made the speech acknowledged that he knew the crowd was armed.

BERMAN: What is important to hear about the extremist groups themselves today?

HONIG: Yes. So, DOJ has done a good job of going after these extremist groups. They've indicted the leader and members of the Oath Keepers, the leader and members of the Proud Boys. We got some really interesting, new information in a filing just last week where DOJ outlined how these groups had military-style training, a quick reaction force, how they gathered firearms and explosives and how they put together a death list of election officials. Now, today, we're going to here from to live witnesses, Jason Van Tatenhove, who was a former spokesperson for the Oath Keepers. He left them a few years ago. He was not there on January 6, but he should give us background into the organization.

And then Stephen Ayres, he has been charged, he has pled guilty for his role in the Capitol riot. And he said importantly during his DOJ case, the reason he went down to D.C. was because of this Trump tweet.

BERMAN: Okay. What links -- we've heard about connective tissue, that what the committee is going to try to do is provide the connective tissue between the extremist groups and the Trump circle.

[07:05:05]

What have we seen? What can you expect?

HONIG: Yes. Today, is going to be all about connections. Zoe Lofgren said, we're going to be connecting the dots during these hearings between these groups and those who were trying in government circles to overturn the election.

A couple of really important, potential connections here, first of all, we know Michael Flynn has a link to QAnon. He posted this image of himself taking a QAnon oath, he tagged it QAnon. We know Roger Stone has direct links to the Proud Boys, who were providing him, quote/unquote, security on and around January 6. Roger Stone has posted various images of himself posing with members of the Proud Boys.

Now, here's the key link to look for. We heard from Cassidy Hutchinson that on January 5th, Donald Trump asked Mark Meadows to get in touch with those same two individuals, Michael Flynn and Roger Stone. So, will we learn more about that? Will the committee really drive home that connection?

And then the other big one is around the same time, Mark Meadows, according to Cassidy Hutchinson, was talking about going over to that war room in the Willard Hotel, meeting with Bannon, Rudy Giuliani and John Eastman. He ultimately changed his mind. He did a phone call instead, according to Cassidy Hutchinson.

But, again, are we going to see those connections between Mark Meadows and the plotting that was happening at the Willard?

BERMAN: Again, we need to see what the committee produces today. It will be fascinating to see how they lay this out in the time they have.

Elie Honig, thank you very much.

Coming up, we are going to speak with an extremism scholar and author of a book called, Oath Keepers, Sam Jackson., what he says to look out for today. And the ex-wife of the Oath Keeper leader will join us as well. KEILAR: For the second time in four days, a huge explosion has rocked the Russian-occupied town of Nova Kakhovka, which is located in the southern region of Kherson. Russian officials say more than 70 civilians were injured, seven people are missing, likely under the rubble.

This attack by Ukrainian forces is possibly the largest in a Russian- occupied part of Ukraine since the invasion began in late February. The town is home to a key hydroelectric dam and a link in the water supply to Crimea.

In Northeastern Ukraine, pharmacists are among those facing constant bombardment from Russian troops as they work hard to provide medication on the frontlines.

CNN's Alex Marquardt is joining us live from the Kharkiv region in Ukraine. Before we do get to your report, Alex, we're just getting some word of new attacks by Russian forces where you are. What can you tell us?

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, Brianna, this is the second day in a row where we have seen a flurry of daytime attacks in Kharkiv. We understand that at least one location that was struck was the industrial district on the eastern side of the city. We are still getting details, but yesterday's strikes killed at least six residents of Kharkiv, including heartbreakingly a father and his 17-year-old son who were on their way for the son to get a certificate for the son to enter university. Brianna, this is becoming a daily occurrence, and it may mean that the Russians are going to try push again towards Kharkiv.

Now, they had advanced on the city in the initial stage of this war. They were then pushed back by Ukrainian forces. That means a lot of towns and villages on the outskirts of Kharkiv were occupied and then liberated, leaving them in a kind of a gray area and leaving many of them devastated, with a lot of people suffering and in desperate need of all kinds of things, including medication.

So, we went out with that team of pharmacist to a number of frontline villages to see how they deliver that much needed medicine.

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MARQUARDT (voice over): In a boarded up pharmacy in Kharkiv, we follow Yulia Klimeniuk down into the basement. They never used the space before the war. Now, it holds shelf after shelf of vital donated medicine while also serving another purpose.

As we've been down here, we could hear heavy shelling from up above. That's not very common at this time of the day in midmorning. Thankfully, we're already down in the basement, so where we need to be.

That shelling killed at least six city residents. Yulia and her team are unfazed. Preparing to head out on a monthly visit to multiple frontline villages which desperately need hard to get medicine, medical supplies and basics, like baby formula.

The pharmacy comes to the village, she says. Pharmacies are either destroyed or there are no pharmacists, and people need medicine.

The lead vehicle in the convoy is an ambulance. When it arrives in the first village, its sirens ring out to tell everyone they're here. Soon, a line has formed. In the rain, old retirees, young parents with their kids, anyone who's left here seems to come out, including a village doctor.

[07:10:06]

We really need medication. We don't have a local pharmacy. We have nowhere to buy anything, she says. Insulin, heart and blood pressure drugs are at the top of her list, along with sedatives and anti- depressants.

Animals are a priority too. Another car is full of dog food for beloved pets, like Bykal (ph). His owner eager, says Bykal (ph) shell shocked from all the explosions.

This village had been occupied by Russian forces caught between the warring sides. The scars of the fighting very visible as is the Russian retreat.

When the Russians occupied this village, a man who lives here says that they would tuck their tanks and their armored vehicles between houses and cover them up to try to hide them. But then Ukrainians retook the village, and you can see they blew up and destroyed this armored vehicle.

After about an hour, the team packs up and moves on to a poorer rural village just 25 kilometers or 16 miles from the closest Russian position. Here, the residents gather around even faster. The profound need for aid is clear. While we're there, a team from World Central Kitchen arrives to hand out meals, another eager line forms.

Many of the Ukrainians we met were forced to live in the basements of their own homes while Russians occupied them, Yulia tells us. They're helpless, held hostage by this situation, she says. We help because they cannot provide for themselves.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MARQUARDT (on camera): And the team that we went out with managed to visit three frontline villages and get medicine to some 400 people. And they tell us that every month, they will visit around 100 villages, just to give you a sense of how many people they are able to reach. And the people that we saw were extremely grateful.

But, Brianna, it's not just about pharmacies being destroyed or closing down, people have lost their jobs. They've lost their means. They may not be able to afford this medicine. They may lost their means of transportation with all kinds of vehicles being blown up, or simply, Brianna, they may just be too scared to leave their homes and neighborhoods. Brianna? KEILAR: Alex, thank you so much for that report, Alex Marquardt live for us in Ukraine.

It is the picture that has got America talking. NASA releasing this first image of the James Webb Space Telescope at the White House. The photo capturing the deepest view of our universe that has ever been seen. The Webb telescope will change the way we see the universe. It will likely answer questions that we don't even know how to ask yet.

Joining us now is former NASA Astronaut Mike Massimino. He's also professor of engineering at Columbia University and he also acts as a senior adviser at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum.

I look at that photo and I would say this CGI, it's a little too perfect. It's an amazing photo.

MIKE MASSIMINO, FORMER NASA ASTRONAUT: Yes, and we can trust the government on this one. That's actually what's out there.

KEILAR: It's real.

MASSIMINO: Yes, it's real.

KEILAR: And so what are we looking at? Why is this so amazing?

MASSIMINO: Well, what we're seeing there is a cluster of galaxies, about 4.5 billion light years away, which is a pretty long distance. But even more impressive, I think, is you're seeing remnants. Some of the streaks that you're seeing are light being bent from galaxies that are even further away, like 13 billion light years away, which means we're getting close to the beginning of the universe with this telescope.

BERMAN: We're seeing 13 billion years ago, which is a while when you think about it.

MASSIMINO: Yes, it is. It's like a time machine.

BERMAN: I've had a chance to talk to you a bunch over the years, Mike. You seem so jazzed about this. Why is this such a big deal?

MASSIMINO: Well, the telescope, the Webb telescope, we've been waiting for a while. We've had great telescopes, Hubble, of course, and others, but this is something that we've really been looking forward to. It has two major objectives. One is to look back far enough to see beginning of our universe, the first light from the first stars. This telescope is powerful enough to do that. Hubble was able to get about 13 billion years back in the past, 13 billion light years, this is a little bit farther. We need about a hundred million more years, and that's what Webb should give us.

And it also has the capability to look at the atmospheres of former planets to see if we can find one that might be habitable. So, this is pretty exciting stuff and I think it's stuff that everyone can relate to. KEILAR: So, that's a big question, when we talk about questions that are going to be asked and maybe answered here, other habitable planets.

MASSIMINO: Yes. And that's something that we have been thinking about. Hubble found that there were other planets in other solar systems but we're still looking to try to analyze these planets as best we can to see if there was one that can support life as we know it, which would be a pretty exciting find.

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BERMAN: You say, we've had one photo released and we're going to see more today.

MASSIMINO: Yes.

BERMAN: You said the ones we're going to see will blow our minds?

MASSIMINO: I think so, yes. And the thing to remember here, this is just the early released images, right, John. So, Brianna, I was so excited when we fixed Hubble and we came back, we came back to Earth, we waited a few months and we got to see those first images because we realized that the telescope was working. We didn't break it but they weren't necessarily what became the most famous or the most meaningful or scientifically prominent photographs or discoveries. Those usually come later. This is just to make sure the thing is working, which is very important because it's a long way away, it can't be fixed.

So, the Webb telescope is in good shape. They've demonstrated their capabilities. But I'm really excited about what's going to be coming up in the months and years to come.

KEILAR: This is like the test page of the printer, right?

MASSIMINO: Exactly, even before that. Yes. This is just making sure the thing is -- and so the engineers are excited. They did their job. It's working. And we're going to see more images today. One of those exoplanets will be shown. So, it may not have any signs of life on it, but it's demonstrating that they can do this. They can look far back to the beginning the universe and they can analyze that mystery as far as a planet. And I think you mentioned it, I think it's more exciting the discoveries that -- they don't even have answers to questions yet. And that's what I think was most exciting about Hubble and I think that's what's going to be most exciting about Webb.

BERMAN: Okay. I'm having a hard enough time wrapping my head around photos from the beginning of time. You had me at photos from the beginning of time.

MASSIMINO: There you go.

BERMAN: Mike Massimino, great to see you, as always. Thank you so much.

MASSIMINO: Thanks so much for having. Great seeing you both. BERMAN: So, the January 6 committee hearing we're going to have in a few hours. We're getting new details about what they will reveal. We're going to speak to the author of a book called the Oath Keepers on what to expect about testimony of today's hearing.

KEILAR: And COVID cases are spiking again. The plan to offer all adults a second booster shot. We'll have Sanjay Gupta here to explain that to us.

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[07:20:00]

KEILAR: U.S. health officials are urgently working on a plan to allow second COVID-19 booster shots for all adults, a senior White House official has told CNN. The FDA is making it a high priority as omicron subvariants fuel a new increase in cases.

And joining us is CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta. So, Sanjay, tell us about this variant that may behind this, in part, or at least that this could alleviate this, the BA.5 variant?

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. So, this is another subvariant but it's very different genetically than the previous subvariant. So, that's one thing to keep in mind. We call these things by their sort of same name, subvariant. But the real question is how different is it from the previous subvariants, and this one is pretty different and it's growing quickly. As you can see, it's now the dominant subvariant in the country increasing pretty significantly just over the past week. So, that's one thing to keep in mind.

The second thing, because it's so different from previous subvariants, the protection that you get from either having been previously infected or from the vaccines is going to wane more quickly with this as well. So, the idea that someone could be infected and then even a month later, a couple of months later, being infected again, reinfected, is a real concern given how different this particular subvariant is.

BERMAN: Yes, you had us in reinfection.

KEILAR: Don't look at me.

BERMAN: You had us at reinfection there, Sanjay. It does seem to be a heightened risk of reinfection there. What is the importance of government allowing for second booster shots for everybody?

GUPTA: Yes. This is really interesting. And I think oftentimes, the data sort of tells a story here. And let me show you, people often ask me this, how much protection do the vaccines really offer.

So, this is basically looking at the likelihood of death according to your vaccination status. First of all, the biggest story is still unvaccinated versus vaccinated at all. The black line is unvaccinated. Obviously, a much different death rate there as compared to vaccinated.

But if you look at the bottom lines there, you start to see another story start to emerge as well, which is that people who have received their vaccines and have also received their boosters, that's going to be the lowest, the bottom line there. You're going to have the most protection against death.

And you can see the waning. When we talk about waning of protection, that story is sort of told by those lines at the bottom. If you have not had a booster shot, or it's been a long time since you've been had one, you're less protected. It's pretty simple.

Ashish Jha, the way that he put was that if you're over the age of 50 and you have not received a shot in the year 2022, you probably need to get one because your protection has waned. And BA.5 has really -- and these other subvariants, have really driven a lot of that.

KEILAR: Do we need to start thinking about masking again in certain environments or with certain groups? I mean, I'm in the middle of getting a four-year-old vaccinated. We just got started, right, we're not done, or if you have an elderly relative who is vulnerable. When should you be thinking about this?

GUPTA: Look, I think we should be thinking about masks. And I know this has become one of those issues that a lot of people have gone back and forth now. There's been confusion. But even as you look at the CDC transmission maps now, and these transmission maps are different than the transmission maps they had before, before, they were just counting cases. Now, they're also taking into account hospitalizations.

But even with this pared down map, you still get a lot of high community transmission around the country. About a third of the country has high community transmission. And in those places, you should be masking indoors. Even in medium levels, you should strongly consider masking indoors. It's only about a quarter of the country where they consider low community transmission right now.

So, yes, I mean, I think if you're going to think about this, and you should, you should get high-quality masks, first of all. Those are the masks you should be wearing. And look at those maps, see where you're living, in big cities, New York, where you guys are, you're starting to get high levels of community transmission again.

So, boosters, the biggest story, I think, in terms of protection for the reasons I told you, but also all the things you can do to cut down on the amount of transmission, masks, ventilation, things like that.

[07:25:10]

Also the thing about reinfections, to your point earlier, I just want to make this clear, is that what the science is starting to show, what's emerging here is that people can get reinfected, and your risks for problems down the line, long COVID, cardiac problems, other things, increases each time you get infected. So, there's a cumulative risk as well. So, there's a real incentive to not keep getting infected, masks, boosters, everything that we're talking about.

KEILAR: Yes, let's try to avoid it. All right, Sanjay, thank you so much.

GUPTA: Got it. Thank you.

KEILAR: So, how do swing state voters feel about the January 6 hearings? CNN's Miguel Marquez finds out.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Where does January 6 in those hearings fit on the priority list for you?

JONATHAN FERNANDEZ, GREEN BAY VOTER: On the bottom rung to me.

MARK BECKER, FORMER BROWN COUNTY REPUBLICAN OFFICIAL: I think in ten years, they'll look back at this and say, yes, it was a big deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: And new details about the 77 minutes police spent inside of Robb Elementary School during the Uvalde massacre, as the community calls for action.

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