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New Day Saturday
Fencing, Barriers, Up At Capitol Ahead Of Right-Wing Rally Today; FDA Panel Recommends Pfizer Booster Shot For Ages 65+; U.S. Military Admits 10 Civilians Killed In Kabul Airstrike; House Aims To Pass $1 Trillion Infrastructure Bill And $3.5 Trillion Spending Plan This Month. Aired 8-9a ET
Aired September 18, 2021 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[08:00:39]
BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, and welcome to your new day. I'm Boris Sanchez.
CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning, Boris. I'm Christi Paul.
Washington D.C. is on high alert right now. There's a rally in support of insurrectionists, with Sterling fears of violence at the Capitol today. We're going to take it to the Hill here from officials who are taking some extra steps right now to avoid something like we saw January 6th.
SANCHEZ: Plus, people over 65 and those at risk for severe illness could soon be eligible for COVID booster shots. Why that recommendation changes the game for the White House's original plan to get booster shots to everyone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEN. KENNETH MCKENZIE JR., COMMANDER, U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND: As the combatant commander, I am fully responsible for this strike in this tragic outcome.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: The U.S. military admitting it killed 10 civilians in a drone striking in Kabul last month. How that deadly mistake happened and the questions that now raises about so-called over the horizon strikes.
SANCHEZ: Plus, a spending splits. Democratic leaders are fighting to keep their party united. Past President Biden's three and a half trillion dollar spending bill amid threats from within their own ranks that they may tank it.
PAUL: Welcome to your weekend on this Saturday, September 18th. We are so grateful to have your company is always. Hey. Boris.
SANCHEZ: I'm great. Hey Christi, great to have you with us. I got to tell you Christi D.C. feels a little bit different this morning. And if you take a look, you can see why. There are barriers and fencing surrounding the Capitol. There is a large law enforcement presence around town. Just hours from now hundreds of rally goers are set to descend on the nation's Capitol for the justice for J6 event. Event organizers say they are gathering to support the rioters who were arrested for storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6th.
PAUL: And the Department of Homeland Security is warning there is the potential for violence. But mastermind behind the rally, a former Donald Trump campaign staffer claims the event will feature quote, a largely peaceful crowd. The law enforcement officials are prepared nonetheless.
CNN's Pete Muntean is in D.C. with more. Pete I would be remiss not to point out what he said that it would largely be peaceful. I don't know if that means that he anticipates, there could be pockets that are not but talk about what you're seeing there this morning.
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well Christi, remember the big difference here between January 6th and now January 6th, this building was filled with lawmakers now it's pretty much only law enforcement here and police insists they have a strong plan in place to tamp down any possible violence that could bubble up here.
I just want to show you the scene a little bit, behind me is the bike rack, then you would have to go through the fence surrounding the Capitol complex. There are more and more police are arriving here all of the time. These two coach buses, a bunch of police was unloaded off of those. You can see them staging over here in front of the Capitol and the pond in front of it. Also, Arlington police from neighboring Virginia there, 25 agencies have been planning for this for weeks. And as Capitol Police will be responsible for protecting the Capitol grounds and the protest area, D.C. police responsible for protecting the streets and surrounding neighborhoods.
Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger said they've been doing tabletop exercises for this. They say there are credible threats that are coming in. But he cannot say how specific or how serious they are.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THOMAS MANGER, CHIEF, U.S. CAPITOL POLICE: It's tough to say whether they're credible or not. We don't know with any certainty. But what we do know is that this -- the chatter that we heard prior to January 6th, obviously turned out to be many of those threats turned out to be in fact credible. And so, we're not taking any chances.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MUNTEAN: Capitol Police just posted on Twitter a photo of their force with the caption teamwork. Capitol Police Chief Tom Manger says the goal here is to protect everybody's free speech since there will be three counter protests that are planned here as well. Manger says one of those groups does have a history of violence and he says the biggest risk for violence here is clashes between groups on both sides.
[08:04:59]
Now the real question How many people will show up for the so-called justice for J6 six rally, 700 people are on the permit here and organizers say 500 people have registered online, but we will see if this is a dud. And all of this protection is overkill.
PAUL: All right, Pete Muntean, we appreciate it so much. Thank you.
SANCHEZ: Thanks, Pete.
So last hour, I spoke with CNN law enforcement analyst and former Secret Service agent Jonathan Wackrow. Here's his take on the law enforcement preparations ahead of today's rally.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JONATHAN WACKROW, CNN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: The preparations that have been made to date are appropriate. The Department of Homeland Security, other law enforcement entities have put out a series of warnings and those warnings should not be taken lightly. Why? Because while we've seen a majority of online discussions by individuals who are attending this event, really centered around paranoia and conspiracy theories.
What law enforcement is keying in on are those messages and conversations that by individuals and groups talking about raising violence and those postings around violence are the justification for the actions and mitigation that we're seeing today. That coupled with this really unmitigated, toxic political environment that really fuels extremist beliefs, all leads to, you know, there being a potential for individual actors to engage in violence today.
So, what we're seeing in terms of the mitigation is appropriate for what we anticipate the threat may be, you know, moving throughout today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: And moving to the coronavirus. There's new data released by the CDC showing Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine is slightly more effective than Pfizer's in regard to keeping people out of the hospital.
SANCHEZ: Yes, Moderna's vaccine has been found to provide 93% of protection while Pfizer's provides 88%. The J&J shot has about 71% protection.
PAUL: The news comes as the FDA Advisory Committee recommends COVID-19 booster shots of the Pfizer vaccine for people 65 and older also for those of you who are high risk.
SANCHEZ: Yes. And the United States is still a ways away from reaching herd immunity. Only about 54% of the country is fully vaccinated, and unvaccinated Americans are filling up hospitals and ultimately dying from the virus. PAUL: CNN national correspondent Nadia Romero has the latest on the coronavirus pandemic.
Nadia, good to see you this morning. Talk to us about where things stand at the moment.
NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey Christi and Boris. So, the FDA advisors overwhelmingly rejected Pfizer's requests to have the booster for everyone 16 and older. Instead, they went for a more tailored approach for those who are high risk and 65 and older. But when you talk to health experts around the nation, they tell you that the priority should not be on boosters, but on the unvaccinated.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We know that there may be differing opinion.
ROMERO (voice-over): After a long day of sometimes contentious debate, advisors to the Food and Drug Administration on Friday rejected Pfizer's request at a booster dose of its COVID-19 vaccine to everyone 16 and older.
KATHLEEN HAYES, FDA DESIGNATED FEDERAL OFFICER: Dr. Lee, yes, Dr. McKenna, yes.
ROMERO (voice-over): Instead voted to recommend emergency use authorization of a booster for people 65 and older and those at high risk.
HAYES: We do have a unanimous 18 out of 18 who voted yes.
ROMERO (voice-over): Regardless of today's outcome. One public health expert says the booster debate is just a distraction to the real problem, the unvaccinated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two thousand people dying a day currently still about 100,000 people hospitalized. So the focus should be on the 67 million people who have not been vaccinated. They're the ones driving this pandemic, not those who've already been fully vaccinated.
ROMERO (voice-over): The Biden administration doubling down on its plan to mandate vaccinations for employees of large businesses and federal workers.
JEFF ZIENTS, WHITE HOUSE COVID-19 RESPONSE COORDINATOR: That means more Americans getting back to work. It means safer schools and healthier families.
ROMERO (voice-over): COVID in the classrooms now putting our nation's children at risk as school districts faced virus outbreaks sending kids back to remote learning.
One metro Atlanta school district becomes the first in Georgia to mandate all teachers and staff must get vaccinated with just a few exemptions to the rule. And with Georgia Governor Brian Kemp using his power to try to live in mask and vaccine mandates, some speculate the district could face lawsuits.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No reason to sue them, for what? Just to protect yourself and the kids. So there's no reason to sue them. For something else, then when you -- you would find another job (INAUIDIBLE). You going to get vaccinated. It's what you going to do?
ROMERO (voice-over): In Texas state leaders hoping iconic big Tex welcomes back a new sense of normalcy after the state fair was canceled in 2020 due to the pandemic. Now Big Tex and the fare back this year.
SUZANNE BRENNAN FIRSTENBERG, ARTIST: I was outraged at the devaluation of the lives of the elderly and lives of color.
ROMERO (voice-over): The toll of the pandemic is front and center at an art installation in Washington D.C. commemorating the Americans who died due to COVID-19.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sometimes our loved ones leave as quickly like a thief in the night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[08:10:04]
ROMERO: So in Cuba, we're already seeing health clinics administering the vaccine to children as young as two years old. When it comes to vaccine boosters, in Israel, they credit those for helping them curb a spike in COVID-19 cases. But the World Health Organization argues that wealthier nations should refrain from using the boosters until everyone in the world has access to the vaccine. Christi.
PAUL: Nadia. Nadia Romero there for us, thank you so much.
Dr. Kierstin Kennedy is with us now. She's chief of hospital medicine at University of Alabama Medicine. Doctor, thank you for taking time to be with us here.
Want to get your reaction, first of all, to these, the ruling from the FDA regarding the booster. And we do know that the booster will be available to healthcare workers. Do you plan to get it yourself?
KIERSTIN KENNEDY, CHIEF OF HOSPITAL MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA MEDICINE: Yes, it gets available to healthcare workers. I will definitely get.
PAUL: So what is you -- go ahead.
KENNEDY: My -- I'm sorry. I think in general, my reaction to the ruling on yesterday is, I mean, it makes sense to me. I mean, I think it aligns with the data and it aligns with what we're seeing here on the front lines taking care of these patients. Primarily the patients that are vaccinated and that are getting very sick and requiring hospitalization or dying are the people that are older or have significant comorbidities that impact their immune systems. This is not a surge of the young vaccinated that are six months out from their shots. This is the surge of the unvaccinated.
PAUL: OK, good, good to clarify on that point. I wanted to ask you about your state specifically, because there are some numbers, latest numbers from Alabama that on the surface seem to be positive, that there's a slight increase in hospital bed availability, the reality is that's only because of the rise of people who are dying from COVID. That's according to the state health officer.
Talk to us about what you are seeing personally, in your hospital right now.
KENNEDY: It's a grim reality. I mean, we have had some capacity open. And it is not because these patients are miraculously getting better and going home. It's because they're dying. And that is really alarming for us, because again, this surge is primarily impacting those that are younger.
And so, this is not what we were expecting. We were expecting, you know, people that were younger, to potentially get sick, but not get as sick as we are seeing. It is not uncommon to see, you know, 30- and 40-year-olds in the ICU, facedown, you know, prone on the ventilator for weeks at a time.
PAUL: Dr. Chris Fennell (ph) was with us a couple hours ago. And she said we have to get our priorities straight, essentially. And because at the end of the day, the bigger issue here is, as you have mentioned, as well, people who are unvaccinated. There are people who don't trust the system, because in part, they've historically been mistreated by it. So, how do you, for instance, reach out to those group of people that have legitimate fears?
KENNEDY: I think those fears are valid. And I think that they have to be acknowledged, and they have to be tapped to be honored. But I don't think that the conversation ends there. I think that's where the conversation begins. I think that's where we start to really talk about the science behind the vaccines, how vaccines work in general. I've said I think the biggest miscalculation we made in healthcare is making the assumption that everyone understands how vaccines work, just because they've been getting vaccinated all their lives. It's incredible how many people don't really understand that a vaccine is not something that stays in your body forever, that lingers is that it's just something that causes your immune system to crank up.
So I mean, I think we really have to start having conversations, once we hear that people have those fears. And I find it at least in my experience, those conversations with people they go well, I mean, I think people are very valid questions. And I think they want to know who was behind the science. And it's comforting to know that these are very different times.
You know, we have African-Americans and you know, people of color involved at every level from those of us that are taking care of the patients to those of us that are actually conducting the research to develop these vaccines.
PAUL: And real quickly before I let you go, we know that you're seeing also a rise in hospitalizations and deaths of pregnant women there in Alabama, understandable why somebody who's pregnant may be concerned about the vaccination. What would you say to them?
KENNEDY: I would say that just as we take the flu seriously, and we listen to our OB-GYNs when they tell us that we need to get the flu vaccine. I will say for one that was when I really started to get the flu vaccine religiously is once I started having children, I think we need to follow that same guidance. Your OB-GYN is entirely focused on your health and your baby's health. And all that matters to them is a good outcome for you and for baby.
And so, if the OB-GYN is saying that you need to get it, you got to listen to that. And I think it's really important as mothers that we do all that we can to protect our children, that is our responsibility.
[08:15:02]
PAUL: Yes, the Dr. Kiersten Kennedy such great information. Thank you for sharing your expertise with us. We appreciate you.
KEENDY: Thanks for having me.
PAUL: Of course.
SANCHEZ: Coming up, a fatal mistake in Afghanistan. The U.S. military says a drone strike in Kabul killed 10 civilians, including seven children. After a quick break, how this operation went terribly wrong.
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PAUL: Nineteen minutes past the hour right now. And the Pentagon is apologizing for what it now admits was a horrible tragedy.
SANCHEZ: This is really heartbreaking. The head of U.S. Central Command says 10 civilians were killed in a drone strike in Kabul in late August, including seven children.
General Kenneth McKenzie says that the U.S. struck what it thought was an ISIS-K target. It was actually an aid worker and his family.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[08:20:02]
MCKENZIE: This strike was taken in the earnest belief that it would prevent an imminent threat to our forces and the evacuees at the airport. But it was a mistake, and I offer my sincere apology.
As the combatant commander, I am fully responsible for the strike and this tragic outcome. While the team conducted the strike, did so in the honest belief that they were preventing an imminent attack on our forces and civilian evacuees. We now understand that to be incorrect.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: General McKenzie says the U.S. launched the strike because, quote, we thought we had a good target.
CNN correspondent Anna Coren takes a closer look at how the strike went so horribly wrong.
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Christi, Boris, the U.S. military has admitted that wrong intelligence led to the killing of 10 innocent Afghan civilians, including seven children following a drone strike in Kabul almost three weeks ago, on what they thought at the time was an ISIS-K target. Instead, they killed a 43-year-old aid worker and father of seven, Zamairi Ahmadi who they now admit had no affiliation whatsoever to any terror network.
CNN carried out an investigation speaking to more than two dozen people, including family members, colleagues and bomb experts, reviewing CCTV footage and retracing Zamairi's steps that day, raising serious doubts about the U.S. military's version of events.
CENTCOM Commander General McKenzie described it as a quote, tragic mistake, saying he takes full responsibility, offering his sincere and profound condolences to the family. He said they had received 16 different intelligence reports of an imminent attack on Hamad Karzai International Airport. A U.S. official earlier told us they had been monitoring intelligence from an ISIS safe house.
The drone strike came just days after an attack on the airport when an ISIS-K suicide bomber killed 13 U.S. service members and more than 170 Afghans. Based on what they thought was a good lead, they followed Zamairi's car as he went about his daily routine, believing he was loading explosives into the car, when he in fact was lifting containers of water into his vehicle.
When he pulled into his family compound, a U.S. official with knowledge of the operation told CNN that drone operators watch the car for four to five minutes before taking the shot. It then realized there were three children in the compound. We have now learned that with further analysis, the U.S. admits there were even more children in the vicinity of the drone strike. A total of seven children were killed, three of whom were toddlers.
General McKenzie said there will be a review of policies and procedures that lead to the strike that took the lives of 10 innocent civilians, and that they are looking at compensation for the family. Christi, Boris.
PAUL: Anna Coren, thank you so much for the report there.
SANCHEZ: In a speech last month before this new information came to light, President Biden hailed the drone strike as a success.
PAUL: Yes. White House reporter Jasmine Wright is with us live. So this strike was meant as retaliation for a terrorist attack that killed more than a dozen U.S. service members. How is the White House responding to this new information today?
JASMINE WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, Boris and Christi, look, this is no news that any White House wants to get. At the U.S. military when combating terror abroad makes a fatal error that ends up with results in the death of innocent children. And while since the news came out yesterday, the White House has been particularly silent on this issue, allowing the U.S. military to do the talking. But let's make no mistake here. This is consequential for the President in two different ways. First, it calls into question the U.S.' ability to really do those so called over the horizon attacks, something that President Biden touted in the build up to that and Afghanistan drove away defending his decision saying, look, we had the ability to do this. And this is OK to withdraw because we can combat terror remotely using those unmanned strikes when the U.S. does not have a presence on the ground.
But in addition to that, really this is the last U.S. missile fired from the -- excuse me, this is the last missile fired from the U.S. in Afghanistan, really walking up to that withdrawal. And it puts just another stain on the administration's really chaotic exit from the war. And you're right Boris and Christi, this is something that the President touted as success this exact strike right after it happened as really a demonstration of the administration's ability to commit those over the horizon attacks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN (D) PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: We've shown that capacity just the last week, we struck ISIS-K remotely days after they murdered 13 of our service members and dozens innocent Afghans.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[08:25:06]
WRIGHT: But now we know Christi and Boris that this was not an attack on ISIS-K member, but instead on an innocent aid worker in his family. So we do know that President Biden was briefed on the outcome of the investigation before the news of the findings went public yesterday, but we still have not heard a direct response from the White House about it. Boris, Christi.
PAUL: Jasmine Wright there from the White House. We appreciate it. Jasmine, thank you.
Colonel Peter Mansoor, retired U.S. Army Colonel, former aide to General David Petraeus with us now. Colonel, thank you for your service. Thank you for being with us.
I want to start where she left off regarding the over the horizon capabilities, what is the value of that tactic right now, at this point?
COL. PETER MANSOOR, RET. U.S. ARMY: think it's going to be really difficult for the administration to fight any sort of terrorist group in Afghanistan from bases in the Gulf region. These drones require several refueling to get there, they have limited time on station. And as this errant drone strike proved, we have limited intelligence capability, once our forces have withdrawn from the region. So we're going to be relying on air reconnaissance and signals intelligence, which just isn't always accurate.
So I think the prosecution, if you will, of the war on terror, in over horizon, capacity is just not going to work.
PAUL: What will work in your opinion?
MANSOOR: Well, we're going to have to get back into the region and we have to work with the nations on the ground there, and they're going to have to do the heavy lifting. You know, if the administration doesn't want to hear it, but we're going to have to work with the Taliban. The Taliban has no love loss for ISIS-K. Let them fight the ISIS-K and we can, you know, give them whatever intelligence we have on what we think are the proper targets, but the Taliban is now the government, they have a very capable military and they can fight ISIS- K on the ground in Afghanistan.
PAUL: How likely do you think the Taliban would work with the U.S. and vice versa? And do you have any trepidations about this withdrawal in general and leaving the country as a whole?
MANSOOR: I think, the Taliban will fight ISIS-K. ISIS-K would, you know, wants to topple the Taliban there. There's no love lost between the two groups. It gets more confusing when you look at other groups say the remnants of al-Qaeda or the Haqqani Network, the head of the Haqqani Network is actually a member of the government, now, the Taliban government in Kabul. So, you know, it depends on what group you're targeting. Some of them Taliban will cooperate in destroying and others they won't.
In terms of did this have to happen? I don't think so. I, you know, had we left a modest troop presence in Afghanistan with logistics and airpower and so forth. We could have helped the Afghan government and his military withstand this Taliban assault. And at very low cost to the United States, we haven't had a troop death in 18 months or so. And, you know, the monetary cost was within clearly within a superpowers budget.
PAUL: So Colonel Cedric Leighton was with us this morning and he's given kudos to CENTCOM Commander General McKenzie for admitting error, for accepting the blame on this. Historically, is this somewhat unique to see a military organization do so? And what is the takeaway of that?
MANSOOR: It is very unique and historical sense. Military organizations don't take responsibility for civilian deaths, willingly or often. And the United States military should be commended for doing so. You know, General McKenzie also said that he's considering ex- gratia payments to the family, which we did in Iraq, for instance, when we killed innocent civilians in the course of military action.
So all of this, I think, proves that the U.S. military holds itself to a higher standard than a lot of other armed forces around the world.
PAUL: Outside that the real tragedy here the human loss from this strike, where does this leave the U.S. in regards to a relationship with its foreign partners? MANSOOR: Yes, so there's a lot of our allies who are wondering if the United States has the will and the capacity in the and the stamina to maintain its alliances around the world. Europe is wondering whether NATO really -- well they could rely on NATO in a crisis, the Asian allies the same.
[08:30:02]
I think this will pass in time. I think this will be a lot like our withdrawal from Vietnam, which was very traumatic at the time. But, you know, our allies really don't have anywhere else to turn the United States has the largest military and the most capable military in the world. And they're going to have to work with us to address regional threats, whether that be a threat from Russia and Europe or a potential threat from China, in Asia.
So, you know, I think this is a bad moment for the United States strategically, politically, militarily, but it will wane over time.
PAUL: Colonel Peter Mansoor, we appreciate your time. We appreciate your service. Thank you, sir.
MANSOOR: Thank you.
PAUL: We'll be right back.
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[08:35:33]
SANCHEZ: It's going to be a busy month on Capitol Hill. Democratic leaders are fighting to keep their members united as they try to pass trillions of dollars in spending while also keeping the government open.
Meantime, Republicans are still grappling with the long term effects of the big lie and what their party is going to look like moving into the future.
To help us navigate the headlines, Politico congressional reporter Olivia Beavers joins us now. Good morning, Olivia. Thanks for joining us.
I want to get straight to some reporting that you put out last night about Ohio Congressman Anthony Gonzalez. He's one of those 10 Republicans that voted to impeach former President Trump this week he announced that he's retiring, that he's not going to seek reelection. He cited threats to his family and toxic dynamics in the GOP. This is striking because in a different era, he'd be seen as a future star in Republican politics, right. Yet --
OLIVIA BEAVERS, CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER, POLITICO: Absolutely.
SANCHEZ: Yes, your reporting indicates that his retirement has been demoralizing for some Republicans. What are they telling you? BEAVERS: Certainly. So as you said, you know, Anthony Gonzalez was seen as this sort of prize recruit, he's from Cuban immigrants. And he was seen as someone who was possibly going to be a new face of the Republican Party. And of course, that all changed with Donald Trump. So when Anthony Gonzalez chose to impeach Trump, he now is basically seen as one of the first political casualties of that vote, he's decided to not run for reelection. He's pointed to the toxic environment. But it also has sent huge signal on Capitol Hill from my conversations that Trumpism is prevailing, and those who decide to cross the former president are the ones being squeezed out of the party.
And so, it's really sort of an interesting dynamic, because now the question that you're starting to hear is, is someone going to follow him? Who's next? And will there be an even further squeeze of these Republicans who chose not to support Trump and chose to impeach him over January 6th?
SANCHEZ: Yes, it appears that the former President is going to weigh in on all sorts of local and state and even national races in ways that former presidents just have not.
Let's talk about Democrats, based on a deal between Speaker Pelosi and moderate Democrats, the House is going to vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill that was passed in the Senate on September 27th. There's still no date set for a vote on that three and a half trillion dollar spending plan that some progressives have tried to attach to that infrastructure bill threatening to tank the whole thing if both don't pass. It's obviously causing some friction in the Democratic Party.
How do you think the leadership is going to handle that balancing act?
BEAVERS: It's, you know, it's really interesting, because this is something that we've seen for weeks, which is the moderates and the progressives both saying that they're not on the same page. So progressives might have their best chance of basically flexing their muscles and pushing for an agenda that they say they want to see past. And through that they might threaten not to support the bipartisan infrastructure bill that was passed earlier this year.
Moderates like Manchin and Sinema and the Senate, those two moderate senators, are also suggesting they won't support their reconciliation plan. It's really kind of an interesting, you know, back and forth to watch because Pelosi said she's waiting on the Senate to pass a reconciliation bill, or at least that was her stance previously.
So basically, you're having leadership, projecting confidence that they can get it done, but it's really, you know, walking this narrow line of pulling in the progressives and the moderates to support their reconciliation and the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
SANCHEZ: And with quite a bit hanging in the balance, especially when it comes to the debt ceiling and a potential government shutdown. We don't have very much time at all. But if you were betting, do you think there's going to be a government shutdown come next month? BEAVERS: You know, this is really a high stakes political game of chicken. You have both leaders who are known for when they speak publicly keeping their word. And I think that you're seeing Democrats are being squeezed quite a bit because they said they do not want to put the debt ceiling in the reconciliation bill. And that would also be pushing their timeline quite a bit.
So I think we're about to see a really high stakes vote coming in. And, you know, right now it looks like neither side is bending. So I'm not a betting woman but it really is looking like we're coming to an intense standoff over raising the debt limit and the government spending bill.
[08:40:13]
SANCHEZ: We can bet on fireworks, that's for sure. Olivia Beavers, thank you so much.
BEAVERS: Exactly.
SANCHEZ: Appreciate the time. Yes.
BEAVERS: Thank you.
SANCHEZ: We do have a quick programming note for you tomorrow night, be sure to watch a new CNN Film "THE PRICE OF FREEDOM." It's about gun violence and the NRAs role in impacting U.S. law. What is the cost of the war on gun control? That story Sunday night at 9:00 p.m.
We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:45:13]
PAUL: OK, in the West much needed relief for the region that are -- that's battered by wildfires there.
SANCHEZ: And finally some rain. Allison Chinchar is live in the CNN Weather Center. How much rain exactly are they expecting Alison?
ALLISON CHINCHAR, CNN METEORLOGIST: Right. So widespread a lot of these areas about one to two inches, but you could have some areas that pick up significantly more as these waves of rain continue to push in across the Pacific Northwest. And again, it's not just going to impact the coastal regions, a lot of this rain actually does make it pretty far inland. Again, that's why you see so much of the color on the screen.
As we mentioned most of these areas about one inch but closer to the coast, two to four inches. Keep in mind and some of these areas because of the terrain, even just a half an inch of rain can trigger flooding. And that's going to be a concern. Now out ahead of the front, the big concern is winds, a very strong gusty winds 40 to 60 miles per hour in some places. That's a concern because of the ongoing wildfires across much of this area. So you do have an elevated and even critical fire threat across numerous states because of those strong winds and the very warm temperatures and some of those wildfires, the Dixie fire specifically which is already at the second spot on the top 10 largest California wildfires edging ever so closely to be possibly becoming the number one.
The one thing to note though on that list there was that how many of them have really been since 2000. You've seen the vast majority of them really in the last 10 to 20 years, and Boris and Christi that really just comes down to climate change. As we warm we make that brush a lot drier and we make these areas much more susceptible to wildfires.
SANCHEZ: Yes, and it does not appear that those trends are going in the opposite direction anytime soon. Allison Chinchar from the weather center, thank you.
PAUL: Thanks, Allison.
Listen, be sure to catch CNN's "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE SERIES." It's all next week with stories that spotlight everyday people who don't make headlines but they still inspire.
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ANDERSON COOPER, CNN HOST (on-camera): He helps the defenseless, learn to defend themselves.
JOHN BERMAN, CNN HOST (on-camera): Theater teaches courage confidence trust.
VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST (on-camera): She saw in me an everyday she sets out to fulfill that needed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is using scuba diving for better environments.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST (on-camera): She is a trailblazing black woman.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Preserving the ocean for our children.
ERIN BRUNETT, CNN HOST (on-camera): Empowering women for financial independence.
DON LEMON, CNN HOST (on-camera): No one should drown because they don't know how to swim. Very good, very good, very good.
PAMELA BROWN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on-camera): Small steps can lead to a big impact.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST (on-camera): We are whoa can help kids in school and beyond.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He is a champion.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She's a champion.
BLACKWELL (on-camera): For a change.
BROWN (on-camera): Change.
KEILAR (on-camera): Change.
GUPTA (on-camera): Change.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: "CHAMPIONS FOR CHANGE" all next week on CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[08:52:13]
PAUL: I know you feel it. COVID prompted a lot of people to go to uncomfortable places emotionally. So how are you resetting that? Well, Counselor Kathleen Edelman says getting to know how we are naturally wired, our temperament is how -- and really how the people around us I should say are wired. It can change everything. She's the author of A Grown Ups Guide To Kids Wiring. But this isn't just for parents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KATHLEEN EDELMAN, FAMILY COUNSELOR: When you're alone, or when you're in crisis, your true temperament surfaces.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: She points out their four different temperaments. They're characterized by colors. And during COVID what most people talk to her about was their fear.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDELMAN: Each temperament sees fear differently, you have the yellows who are all about connection, and they feared never being able to connect again. So that being withdrawn from people sent a lot of them into depressions. And you have reds who they are productive and get things done and now they're confined. And they did everything they could in their house, you know, maybe put a new kitchen in and built a shed it did. But then they ran out of things to do. You know what I'm saying? So, now it's anger that starting to rear its head. The blues probably fared the best at the beginning, because we're reserved anyway. So isolation or being by ourselves is actually life giving. But then it started to be fearful. He saw a lot of anxieties come up, like am I going to die, is someone I love going to die. The green who is so adaptable, usually inflexible, started to be very concerned that their interests, they only do things that they're interested anyway. And now they're taken away from that interest. And they're like, they just stopped doing everything. So you saw them withdraw.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: She says knowing our temperament and how we speak not just to other people, but to ourselves is what heals relationships.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDELMAN: My whole mission in life is for people to speak kindly to each other. But the first place that starts is speaking kindly to you.
You cannot give what you don't have. So if you're not recognizing the strengths that you are given, and you're living out of your weaknesses, you're on a reserve tank, like you have nothing really to give to your children or your husband or your spouse or your partner.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: She says once we know our temperament, we have the power to live out of our strengths rather than our weaknesses.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[08:54:59]
EDELMAN: We want them make sure that you know that the words you use are the words you choose. So, when you know your child's wiring, your words are either going to help or they're going to hurt.
Your words are going to echo in a child's heart and mind for a lifetime.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL: A Grownups Guide Kids Wiring, I'm reading it. It is fascinating. Thank you to her. And thank you to you for sticking with us this morning.
SANCHEZ: Yes, we'll be back in just about an hour. So don't go anywhere. Smerconish is next. Have a good morning.
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