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New Day Saturday

COVID Study: Virus Leading Cause Of Death In U.S. This Week; Trump Heads To Georgia To Rally In Crucial Senate Races, GOP Worried His Election Lies Will Discourage Voters; COVID-19: Separating The Fact From The Fiction; Nancy Pelosi: Rejecting Previous Republican Proposals Was "Not A Mistake"; "President Is Waiting" Premiers Tonight At 9PM ET; Coronavirus Pandemic: Adjusting To Our New Reality. Aired 8-9a ET

Aired December 05, 2020 - 08:00   ET

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


[08:00:00]

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We end the week with sobering news about the pandemic even with vaccines on the rise. New records being set for cases, people hospitalized and people dying.

JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: The leading cause of death for all Americans this week is COVID-19.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Help is on the way. Vaccines are imminent.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have the expectation that at least 20 million Americans will be able to receive COVID vaccines by the end of this year.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Trump's Saturday visit has Republicans on edge.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm deeply concerned about anybody who wants to tell Georgia citizens not to go out and exercise their right to vote.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is not just about Georgia. This is about America. This is about the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. It is Saturday, December 5th. You're up early, but we're grateful for it. I'm Christi Paul.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Christi. Good morning, everyone. I'm Martin Savidge in for Victor Blackwell. We start today with the COVID-19 numbers, because they are the number one cause of death in the United States this week. Coronavirus caused more deaths than heart disease, lung cancer, even stroke.

CNN's Alison Kosik is outside of Mt. Sinai hospital in New York. And Alison, these numbers are really so alarming, and we know of course that there is a vaccine on the way. But the concern is how do we get the numbers down until then?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, good morning Martin. Hospitalizations had been skyrocketing setting a new record on Friday. It's raising big concerns about overwhelming hospital systems including right here in New York.

As a brutal second wave strikes, Coronavirus becomes the leading cause of death in America. 14,000 deaths have been reported since thanksgiving. In a CNN Town Hall Friday, Dr. Anthony Fauci said we are headed for a post-holiday surge.

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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: The event usually is followed by two to three weeks later. You see the increase in cases which puts it right at the cusp, before the Christmas holiday, where you're going to have more travel and more congregating.

KOSIK (voice-over): Numbers broke records around the country this week, Johns Hopkins reported almost 228,000 cases and more than 2,600 deaths Friday on. And experts warn the worst is coming.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What lies ahead for the next few months? It's actually are worst case scenario in terms of overwhelmed hospitals, in terms of the death count.

KOSIK (voice-over): The University of Washington's Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation projects over 260,000 more people could die by spring. The CDC tweeted Friday, hospitalization rates are at an all-time high, reiterating to the public, wear a mask. Wash your hands. Avoid crowds.

New CDC guidelines also urge postponing travel and in some circumstances, wearing a mask at home. In California, COVID cases shatter hospitalization and ICU records hitting a single day high of more than 22,000 cases. Almost 10,000 hospitalized and over 2,200 in ICU.

Governor Gavin Newsom imposes emergency measures with a regional shutdown order of five bay area counties covering more than 5.8 million people. The order will require bars, theaters and salons to close while retail must operate at 20 percent capacity. Masks will be mandatory.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The bottom line is if we don't act now, our hospital system will be overwhelmed. If we don't act now, we'll continue to see a death rate climb. More lives lost.

KOSIK (voice-over): Orders go into effect this weekend. Statewide orders are expected soon. New hope is on the horizon with pharmaceutical companies working to obtain FDA approval and states making vaccine distribution plans. But the public is urged to take immediate action. DR. FAUCI: If we as a country uniformly do the things that we know can mitigate against spread. Those simple things alone, despite the enormity of the problem can make a difference.

KOSIK (voice-over): President-Elect Biden said this week he will push major mitigation efforts when taking office.

BIDEN: I'm going to ask the public for 100 days to mask. Just 100 days to mask. Not forever, 100 days, and I think we'll see a significant reduction.

KOSIK (on-camera): And New York will now begin using hospitalizations as the main metric in deciding whether areas of New York should remain open or whether they should close.

[08:05:00]

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo is blaming the latest surge of COVID cases in New York, not on mass gatherings that we saw at the beginning of the pandemic or during the pandemic earlier. He's blaming on what he calls living room spread these intimate gatherings of family and friends. That, Christi, is what he sees as the latest surge in New York. Christi?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: All right. Alison Kosik, so good to see you this morning, thank you. Huge logistical challenge there is with Coronavirus vaccines and states are warning that the first shipments may not be enough to vaccinate everyone that they need to target in their first round. We're going to talk about that another critical vaccine headlines with Former FDA Commissioner Dr. Peggy Hamburg that's coming up in a few minutes.

SAVIDGE: Turning to politics now hours from now President Trump is heading to Valdosta, Georgia his way to the south to campaign for two Republican Senators.

PAUL: Exactly one month from today Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue are facing off Democratic opponents Raphael Warnock and John Ossoff. This is a race that really will determine the balance of power in the Senate which is why it is so crucial.

SAVIDGE: The president's trip though it is worrying some Republicans, they fear that he can do more harm than good, after sowing doubt with baseless claims of election fraud. Some conservatives say they don't even want to vote.

PAUL: CNN's Sarah Westwood is at the White House for us right now. We know the president's rally that we're going to see today, Sarah is the first since he lost the election. He's railed against the voting system in Georgia he's railed about the Governor and other leaders here. Is there an expectation that he will really push for the Senators as opposed to airing his own personal grievances?

SARAH WESTWOOD, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well Christi, that's certainly the hope of Georgia Republicans. They want the president who is still very popular in Georgia despite having narrowly lose it come there and promote these two Senators promote them for their reelections ahead of that January 5th runoff.

But he has been spouting a lot of counterproductive rhetoric leading up to this appearance. He has been attacking the same Georgia officials who are working to elect these Senators as well. He has been casting doubt on the election results that we saw in November in ways that Republican officials fear could depress turnout next month.

They fear that there are some Republican voters who would otherwise cast a vote for Senators Perdue and Loeffler, but they may stay home because they buy into the president's baseless claims that their vote may not be held securely.

And all the while the president is still refusing to concede the race even as many around him are starting to acknowledge the reality that soon there will be a Democrat in the White House that Trump will not be getting a second term.

Yesterday, campaigning for the same Senators in Georgia, Vice President Mike Pence said that those two Republicans could ultimately be the last line of defense for the GOP which seemed to be an acknowledgement that there won't be a Republican in the White House as well.

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MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: And we need to send them back, because the Republican Senate Majority could be the last line of defense, preserving all that we've done to defend this nation, revive our economy and preserve the God-given liberties we hold here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WESTWOOD: Now, most of the president's cabinet has remained silent on his refusal to acknowledge the election results. But we did hear from CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield, speaking also in Georgia yesterday. He hinted at the uncertain future by acknowledging that he soon may not be at his agency.

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DR. ROBERT REDFIELD, CDC DIRECTOR: And we'll continue to guide our nation's response to the pandemic after we're gone.

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WESTWOOD: And this is all taking place against the backdrop of a rising number of COVID cases in Georgia. In fact, the state's largest newspaper this morning ran with the headline about the record-breaking surge of infection that's we're seeing Georgia. So that's what the president is flying into today also with this decision to convene a large in person gathering amid the pandemic Martin and Christi.

(END VIDEO CLIP) SAVIDGE: Sarah Westwood at the White House, thank you very much. Joining me now to talk about all of this David Shafer, he is the Chairman of the Georgia Republican Party. Good morning to you sir.

DAVID SHAFER, CHAIRMAN, GEORGIA REPUBLICAN PARTY: Good morning to you.

SAVIDGE: So let me start with this we spoke recently with Nikema Williams she is of course you know the Chairwoman of the Democratic Party of Georgia, listen to what she had to say about claims of voter fraud in your state and get your thoughts. So, let's listen to her first real quick.

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NIKEMA WILLIAMS, CHAIRWOMAN, DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF GEORGIA: It's unfortunate that we still have Republican leaders in our state who are giving credence to what is being said, and these false narratives around election fraud. I'm standing with Atlanta this morning and I encourage my Republican colleagues to do the same because this is gone way too far.

They need to stop following hook, line and sinker with Donald Trump making in a front row democracy and stand up for what they know is right?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[08:10:00]

SAVIDGE: So, Mr. Shafer, do you believe that there is widespread voter fraud in Georgia?

SHAFER: There are unquestionably problems with the election. We filed a lawsuit yesterday that showed that thousands of votes were cast by inmates in prison, by people who don't live in the state.

SAVIDGE: That's an allegation - that's an allegation you've made. That's not proof of anything.

SHAFER: We submitted hundreds of pages of evidence, along with a lawsuit. And it will be litigated in the courts. But we've seen over the last several years, the Democrats have filed a series of lawsuits that were designed to eliminate election safeguards sow confusion and upend the timely and accurate counting of ballots and that is a problem that absolutely must be corrected. You know whether you like President Trump or not.

SAVIDGE: Well, you must be keenly aware that, of course, the whole election process in this state is run by Republicans from the Governor to the Secretary of State--

SHAFER: Well, that's not true at all.

SAVIDGE: Well, it's also the Georgia Republican legislature is dominated by Republicans.

SHAFER: Right.

SAVIDGE: So, what is untrue about that?

SHAFER: That suggests the fundamental misunderstanding of how elections are conducted in Georgia. Elections are conducted county by county. There are 159 counties most of the counties do a good job, but - at a handful of large Democratic controlled counties.

We saw almost all of the problems in those counties we do have Republican officials who are responsible for overseeing the work, but they don't actually conduct the work. Secretary Brad Raffensperger has launched 250 investigations into the conduct of the general election poll watchers and poll workers being denied the opportunity to observe the counting of ballots, ballots being cast by people who do not live in the state people who are not registered to vote.

SAVIDGE: We've also done two recounts, as you know, in the state. One of them by hand and also that the Secretary of State has come forward and said despite what minor irregularities that was thought. There is nothing he has seen that would change the outcome of the election. So why do you persist in saying that there is something that would suggest otherwise?

SHAFER: Well, in all three of those recounts, ballots cast by people who don't live in Georgia were counted. Ballots were cast by people who were in prison were counted. Ballots were cast from people who had died that were counted.

We filed an election contest yesterday to show the ballots that we believe are irregular and that will obviously be decided by the judicial process. You know--

SAVIDGE: Again, the Secretary of State who oversees the election says that there is nothing of significant numbers that would change the outcome here? That's my question to you; do you accept the results of the presidential election and recognize that Joe Biden is the President-Elect?

SHAFER: So, the certified returns show that Joe Biden is 12,000 votes ahead of Donald Trump. And we filed a lawsuit yesterday that shows more than 12,000 unlawful votes--

SAVIDGE: That alleged more than 12,000?

SHAFER: That is correct. Along with the evidence that will be examined by a judge in the judicial process.

SAVIDGE: So, why can you not just accept what the results have been in this state? I mean, we've gone through so much scrutiny. You continue to seem to want to plant and cast doubt upon the veracity of the vote which is so crucial to democracy.

SHAFER: Because the only way we're going to restore confidence in the integrity that they were conducted perfectly or that there is not--

SAVIDGE: By the leaders of the state-- SHAFER: Listen, you - all summer long when buildings were burning when stores were being looted, when people were being killed, CNN was calling those actions peaceful protests.

SAVIDGE: I don't know how that relates to the outcome of the election here. I'm simply asking whether you will endorse--

SHAFER: Whether you will--

SAVIDGE: I'm asking you if you recognize the fact that the President- Elect of the United States is Joe Biden. Do you, sir, recognize that?

SHAFER: The certified - the certifications would suggest that. What I'm saying to you that in Georgia--

SAVIDGE: The certifications--

SHAFER: --that's one step in the process.

SAVIDGE: How long do you keep fighting against what is clearly the decision made by the voters of Georgia?

SHAFER: We will continue to fight to make sure that every lawful vote is counted and that every unlawful vote is rejected. And that counting here in Georgia is done in the open and in accordance with the law. That is our fight. It has nothing to do with who the president is. It has to do with the fact that we've got to have elections that people of Georgia in this country have confidence in.

[08:15:00]

SAVIDGE: And there's nothing to suggest otherwise happened in this election from Attorney General William Barr right down to the Republican Secretary of State, there is nothing to say that the outcome is different? That was a quote coming from William Barr.

SHAFER: That's absolutely untrue. If that was true about what Brad Raffensperger has said, why has he opened up 250 investigations into the conduct of the election?

SAVIDGE: I assume the reasoning he's doing that is because he was trying to show to Republicans to continue over and over that the election results is certified?

SHAFER: You don't need to guess why he's doing it - you need to listen to why he said he was doing it. He said that he had specific incredible allegations of unlawful conduct that is the standard and to open an investigation. He opened 250 investigations.

SAVIDGE: Mr. Shaffer, thank you for joining us this morning. We appreciate it and we'll get in touch with the Secretary of State.

SHAFER: A real pleasure, thanks so much.

SAVIDGE: Thank you. PAUL: Big changes sometimes mean big deals the way people respond to COVID-19, that's not exception. Up next, we break down the facts and buck some of the myths that are out there right now for you.

Also, after months of stalemate, Coronavirus relief negotiations have reignited on Capitol Hill, at the moment, we're talking to one of the Senators who is fighting to pass a new stimulus package. He's even launched a complaint about Senate taking holiday recess if there's not a bill.

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[08:20:00]

PAUL: In a year like this one which has thrown so much up in the air, it's understandable why a lot of us feel shaky about big changes such as having to wear a mask or socially distance ourselves, even when experts like Dr. Anthony Fauci is saying this is vital that we stick with it.

SAVIDGE: CNN's Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is on hand to help separate the fact from the fear and buss some COVID-19 vaccine myth.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: We hear a lot of things about the vaccine. And some concerns that people have, some myths that are out there being shared on social media. Such as the fact that the vaccine, the platform for the vaccine was designed in two days isn't that too rushed.

Well, it's interesting, it really is pretty remarkable how fast the vaccine was developed, but it was more like taking the code, the genetic code, and plucking out a piece of that code that would be used to make the vaccine. So, it's more like a computer code than making a biologic in the lab, for example.

But also, the technology that we're talking about for these vaccines the Messenger RNA vaccines although that research was started decades ago, two decades ago in terms of actually figuring out how to create this new Messenger RNA vaccine.

Oh yes, it was fast. Typically, these things, take years, not, months, but a lot of the scientific development around this has been ongoing for some time. Another thing that I hear a lot is that, if you have COVID, if you've got it you don't need the vaccine.

There are a couple of things to keep in mind there as well. One is that, if you got the natural infection for COVID, you likely did develop antibodies and that gives you protection. The issue right now is we don't know how long that sort of protection lasts. It could last a long time. But it may not, and we're seeing evidence of re- infection.

So, that's one reason that you should probably get the vaccine anyway. The second reason is that the vaccine is sort of designed, especially with these two-shot vaccines to prime the immune system and then to boost it. The idea, hopefully, is that the type of immunity that you get lasts longer and is stronger from the vaccine than from natural infection.

We don't know that for sure yet, but that could be the case. Another thing that we hear a lot of about with these genetic vaccines specifically is could it actually cause me to get infected. Could the vaccine actually lead to me becoming infected with the Coronavirus?

Well, one thing about these vaccines is that you're not actually getting virus. That's typically how of think of vaccines, going back to smallpox, you give a little bit of virus; the body would react to it. It wouldn't make the body too sick, but the body would react to it, and then they would have antibodies.

In this case, you're just giving the genetic code for a portion of the virus. As a result, you're not actually giving any virus, certainly no live virus at all in the vaccine and you really can't get infected. We're going to see these trial results and we're going to see what happens with the FDA next week, but a lot of these are the same types of questions that are being considered by them right now.

SAVIDGE: And making sure that everyone has access to the Coronavirus vaccine is of course one of the biggest challenges that lies ahead. And the CNN analysis of the expected size of the first shipment for at least 45 states could be cause for concern because the numbers fall short of what is needed to fully vaccinate health care workers and long-term care residents. We want to discuss that now with Dr. Peggy Hamburg, a Former FDA Commissioner during the Obama Administration. Good morning to you.

DR. MARGARET HAMBURG, FORMER FDA COMMISSIONER: Good morning.

SAVIDGE: Let me just run down some of these numbers that CNN has uncovered. For instance, California must vaccinate 2.4 million healthcare workers, but Governor Gavin Newsom says the state is only going to receive about 327,000 doses of the vaccine from Pfizer.

Alabama set to receive 40,950 doses yet the state has 300,000 workers and 22,000 residents in long term care facilities. Montana is receiving around 9700 doses of the vaccine when it has more than 40,000 health care workers.

The point I have here is that, many states clearly are getting a dose of reality if you excuse when it comes to the vaccine, and they're going to have to ration. Now rationing was something expected but they will have to ration even amongst those who are on the front lines medically, right?

[08:25:00]

DR. HAMBURG: Well, it's going to be very challenging. Distribution is going to be crucial. And while we started to set the priority groups in terms of risk for COVID-19 and who needs to get the vaccine first, as you say, there's not going to be enough.

But we're just going to have to do this in a statewide function. And states have a lot of responsibilities on their shoulders right now to do that priority setting and it's not going to be easy. In addition to getting the vaccine to individuals, we need to track who got the vaccine so we can make sure they get that second dose, as Sanjay noted.

These first vaccines that will be going out for broader use do require two doses, to achieve the level of efficacy. So, we need to be carefully distributing and tracking individuals. So, this is - this is going to be almost as hard as making the vaccine itself.

SAVIDGE: President-Elect Biden spoke about that very issue yesterday. Here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: There is no detail plan that we've seen, anyway. As to how you get the vaccine out of a container into an injection syringe into somebody's arm. And it's going to be very difficult for that to be done and it's a very expensive proposition. There's a lot more that has to be done.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: And I'm wondering, doctor, would you agree with that kind of assessment by the president-elect?

DR. HAMBURG: Well, absolutely. These kinds of vaccination campaigns are very labor-intensive, time-intensive, and they have to be done right. And there has not been the kind of transparency about what the plans are, for distribution and actually getting the vaccines into the people who need them.

And as has been said by many others, you can have the world's most safe and effective vaccine, but if people don't actually take it, then it can't achieve its public health goal. And that is a real reason for concern that a lot of people don't fully trust whether this vaccine is safe and whether they should be taking it.

So, we also need to have a very concerted and aggressive effort to make sure that people understand the facts about the vaccine that they're hearing about the vaccine and why it matters from people that they trust. And that we can really make available the vaccine in a meaningful way, as it becomes available.

SAVIDGE: Do you think, or would you endorse any kind of incentive program to get and encourage people to get the vaccine?

DR. HAMBURG: Well, the best incentive is their opportunity to take care of their own health, the health of their family and protected others in their community and beyond. And, you know, public health vaccination is probably the greatest advance in medical history, and we know it makes a difference. And we need to help people to appreciate that this is a historic moment where we can actually move a new vaccine, set of vaccines out to people.

But we have to make sure that the right programs are in place to make the vaccine available that is equitable and based on science. And that people, you know, trust the vaccine; understand why it will make a difference for them, their loved ones, their friends, their communities.

SAVIDGE: Dr. Peggy Hamburg, we appreciate you joining us this morning. Thank you.

DR. HAMBURG: Thank you.

PAUL: I know this is something that so many of you are waiting to hear about. We've had months of the stalemate over the Coronavirus relief negotiations well, they've reignited on Capitol Hill now. Well, our next guest is one of the Senators fighting for a new stimulus package. He's even lodged an objection to the Senate's holiday recess if there's no bill. We're going to speaking to Senator Tim Kaine in just a moment. Stay close.

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[08:30:00]

PAUL: It seems like we were waiting and waiting to hear about this. And finally, it's being taken off the shelf. The stalemate over the Coronavirus relief negotiations, those talks reigniting on Capitol Hill, thanks to a bipartisan group of lawmakers putting together a stimulus framework.

Now, the new deal being floated it a $900 billion relief package. Roughly half the size of the $1.8 trillion compromise deal that the White House had offered by Speaker Nancy Pelosi prior to the election. She was asked by CNN's Manu Raju if it was a mistake not to accept the original offer and here's what she said.

(BEGIN VIEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: After it was proposed months ago, you said--

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): I'm going to tell you something. Don't characterize what we did before as a mistake as a preface to your question if you want an answer. That was not a mistake. It was a decision and it's taken us to a place where we can do the right thing. The fact is I'm very proud of where we are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: One of the Senators calling for congress to pass a bill immediately, Senator Tim Kaine. Senator, thank you so much for taking the time to be with us this morning good to see you.

SEN. TIM KAINE (D-VA): Thank you.

PAUL: You tweeted, and I want to quote this here, we absolutely must pass meaningful COVID relief before we recess for the holidays. And I know you told our colleague Lauren Fox, that you're prepared to prevent the Senate from going into recess without a relief bill. What exactly are you in a position to do to make that happen and how much support do you have for not taking the holiday recess before this is reconciled?

[08:35:00]

KAINE: Christi, this is a very unusual move. I've done it once in eight years in the Senate during the government shutdown in 2019. I blocked a weekend recess when federal employees were about to lose their paychecks. And then we have got a bill passed to guarantee all federal employees back pay for this or any future shutdown.

And I - object to a recess until we get COVID relief. When I did it in 2019, I was on my own, but I think I'm going to have a lot of supporters. Democrats and Republicans with me this time, there is no reason we should leave Washington until we get this COVID relief bill done.

PAUL: Is there any element in the deal that you just can't get behind? What is the sticking point?

KAINE: Look, there are parts of the deal I don't like. I don't like the price tag. I think there was a bipartisan proposal on the table on the house in September that was essentially a trillion and a half. At the time, I thought we should have run with that, so I don't really like the price tag. I don't think it's sufficient.

But I'll tell you this, two things, one in the Senate a bill gets to the floor if Senator McConnell where the Majority Leader says a bill is on the floor, he's been unwilling to put any bill on the floor north of 500,000. No state and local government aid, no food aid any housing assistance.

So this one does include those components and the second thing is I think it is a little bit easier for Democrats to do a smaller deal knowing that Joe Biden will be president in late January, because he's pledged a Coronavirus economic recovery package as his first bill.

So, I think we're now in the range in recent there are still something tails. I'm working on state and local government aid and there is a liability protection issue which you know the Republicans don't love the state and local government aid.

Democrats don't like the liability protection, so we're still trying to work that out. But I think we're going to get there. And I think there is a growing number of Senators in both parties who believe like I do that we can't go home without providing this relief. Millions of Americans are going to lose unemployment insurance the day after Christmas.

PAUL: Yes, people are wondering how to feed their kids or if they can pay their rent? This is not the time of year to be dealing with that particularly with trying to get into a shelter in the middle of winter, if that is what some people are forced to do.

Now, there are some people that are asking the reasoning for this because you mentioned it, and the point is Speaker Pelosi is backing at this point now a stimulus bill that is half the size of what the White House had offered. And the only thing that's changed between that time frame those we now have President-Elect Joe Biden who's ready to take the reins. How do you explain that that is not a political move?

KAINE: Well, again, I think there are two factors, one - look, we still don't know whether Senator McConnell is going to put any bill on the floor that's a $900 billion bill. I mean, this week, he was still shopping around the $500 billion.

So even if all of us said in September, OK, a trillion five is fine, no guarantee that the Senate would have taken it up, in fact, the Senate likely wouldn't have taken it up. But again, this point about Biden being President in January, it is not just that he is going to be inaugurated it is that he said Coronavirus relief is his first priority.

There was no guarantee that that was going to be the case if Donald Trump had been reelected. So I think people were thinking in September and October, we've got to do a COVID bill that may will be the last bill we do. Now, we have a sense that we can do a bill that will get us to the first quarter into 2021, and then the Biden Administration will come in with a more robust economic recovery package. So this isn't our last bite of the apple which makes it easier to do a bill with a lower price tag.

Paul: Senator Tim Kaine, thank you so much again for getting up early for us on a Saturday. We appreciate it.

KAINE: Absolutely, glad to do it, Christi.

PAUL: Thank you, sir.

SAVIDGE: In addition to food security, millions of families are at risk of being evicted in the coming weeks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: --every day I just try not to let it show.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: We'll share one mother's struggle to pay rent after losing her job. Programming note tonight be sure to watch the new CNN film "President in Waiting" you'll hear from all six living vice presidents including now President-Elect Joe Biden.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: So the President and I would talk about it alone we'd talk about it with a small group, toward end of fall when it was opened up to Secretary of State, to the Homeland Security, et cetera, there was a lot more discussion about trying to decide where Bin Laden was there. But literally, because of the phases of the move, we got to a place where the president had 48 hours to make a decision to go or not go. (END VIDEO CLIP)

SAVIDGE: And that is tonight at 9:00 pm, right here on CNN.

[08:40:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SAVIDGE: A federal order protecting millions of American families from eviction is set to expire at the end of the year.

PAUL: CNN's Natasha Chen spoke to one mother who is weighing her options.

NATASHA CHEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: 2020 has been a year of first for Victoria Giddens and none have been cause for celebration, in March as the pandemic forced much of the economy closed, Giddens who had just accepted a job with a rental car company at the airport had that offer rescinded, a first for 30-year-old Giddens who lives with her boyfriend and their 2-year-old son.

[08:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VICTORIA GIDDENS, FACING EVICTION: We knew we had a 2-year-old to take care of. I was so depressed.

CHEN (voice-over): Two incomes in January became one by March. Then as she struggled to find work and stay on top of some bills, another first, an eviction notice on her door telling her she had to be out by January 6th.

GIDDENS: I'm stressed every day. I just try to not to let it show.

CHEN (voice-over): Especially not in front of her son who can sense when something is wrong.

GIDDENS: I believe in God. I pray to God and I think he's going to take care of everything.

CHEN (voice-over): This year was also her first time ever asking for financial assistance just to pay her past due rent.

GIDDENS: I didn't want to just sit down and do it, but I had to.

CHEN (voice-over): She emailed a list of charities seeing who could help.

ESLENE RICHMOND-SHOCKLEY, FOUNDER, CARING FOR OTHERS: Where does this put this client if we clear up the past due rent?

CHEN (voice-over): We followed Giddens to see Eslene Richmond-Shockley Founder of the Organization "Caring for Others".

RICHMOND-SHOCKLEY: During the COVID-19 era, you have seen the rules change so much towards the clients and every day is a fight.

CHEN (voice-over): A check for more than $4,400 came from donors she found in the last few days, preventing Giddens from being thrown out of her home at least for now.

GIDDENS: I'm blessed and thankful.

CHEN (voice-over): For Shockley, who says her organization has run out of financial assistance funds; the issue strikes a wrong nerve.

RICHMOND-SHOCKLEY: I understand what it is to sleep at a - bus station on Christmas Eve night in Washington, D.C. when no one would open their doors for me. And I was a student and I have to continue helping till the day I die.

CHEN (voice-over): But even helping tenants with past due rent won't solve the problem of what's ahead when unemployment has dried up with scarce job opportunities and new rent to pay. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued a temporary order to halt evictions nationwide. But that expires at the end of the month. So, Georgia legal services Susan Reef (ph) says housing attorneys are bracing for the first Monday in January.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think every legal services housing attorney in Georgia has that date circled in red. Because that is the day that the courts will open, and landlords can go in and begin filing for non- payment.

CHEN (voice-over): The CDC would not answer our question about whether the order would be extended citing ongoing legislation. And anything a new administration may do won't happen until President-Elect Biden takes office in late January. I asked Reef, what's tenant protections there are in the meantime?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have no good answer for you or for my clients who call with those issues. And it is a painful position to be in as a lawyer.

CHEN (voice-over): Natasha Chen, CNN, Atlanta.

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PAUL: Every Saturday, we're highlighting cities across the U.S. with resources to aid those who need it. First, we want to go to New Hampshire. The New Hampshire Food Bank is holding a mobile food pantry in Manchester, the following two Fridays December 11th and December 18th.

In New Jersey, Union County is holding an emergency drive-up and walk- up for food distributions for county residents that's tomorrow starting at 9:00 am. And then in New Mexico, Seedcorp has partnered up with Roadrunner Food Bank for a huge food drive at Albuquerque it is happening tomorrow at Expo, New Mexico. It's starts at 9 am and they'll provide food for 3000 families.

We do, of course, recommend calling each location before you go to confirm service hours and requirements, but we certainly hope that this helps. So, you're going to hear how the pandemic reminded this martial arts teacher to slow down and appreciate all the small things in life. But, my goodness, does he have a story.

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[08:50:00]

PAUL: So, do me a favor and think about something, how has COVID changed you? I've been asking people that question, hoping that we can learn something from each other, maybe not feel so alone. I call it the reset.

Well, Paul Yoon is the CEO of Tsunami mixed martial arts in Atlanta and he is also an instructor there. It's remarkable his story. Seven years ago, he was in a coma after a horrible motorcycle accident. But this week, he told me about the lessons he learned from that experience and said he realized he fell into some old routine because some of those lessons resurfaced when he caught COVID.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL YOON, CEO, TSUNAMI MIXED MARTIAL ARTS, ATLANTA: So, you know, you got to those reminders in life, right? So, this is one of those reminders where is it's like, hey, by the way Yoon, I taught you a lesson and you're forgetting it. So, you just review your lesson. After COVID, I learned to slow down again, and appreciate the small things in my life.

PAUL (voice-over): Paul says he always knew his tsunami family which is how he describes his martial arts people. Were good people and they're people that he values? Now having survived COVID, he realized something that really woke him up how much they value him.

YOON: I had several family calls or email and say, hey, we're - going and either if we're not doing - taking Zoom classes right now, but this even - we want to keep - so that really, really touched me. I know without their help. Tsunami wouldn't have been able to survive.

PAUL (voice-over): So, they helped save his business essentially and he says COVID helped him reset in this way. It reminded him to see past the things that don't matter, and to focus on the moments that do. He quit micromanaging his life and now looks at the bigger picture.

[08:55:00]

YOON: My legacy is going to be creating better people. That is my legacy. That's what I'm on this earth to do. And so martial art is my vehicle. That's the tool that I use. You as a person, what you mean for the world, make it a better world than when you came in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL (on-camera): And now we're learning to do hard things. Tell me how the Coronavirus and quarantine has changed you, has changed your approach to life? You can find me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook, and thank you for doing so. I love hearing from you.

SAVIDGE: Yes, that's really interesting a lot of - a lot of self- introspection at this time. That's great Christi, thank you. We'll see you again in next hour actually 10:00 hour because right now, "Smerconish" is coming up next.

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