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New Day Sunday

Mourners Pay Tribute to Cinematographer Halyna Hutchins; Biden, Democrats Scramble to Reach Deal on Social Spending Plan; Obama Campaigns for Governor Candidates in Virginia, New Jersey; Jury Selection Begins in Murder Trial for Killing of Ahmaud Arbery. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired October 24, 2021 - 07:00   ET

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

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[07:00:37]

RYAN NOBLES, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning and welcome to your NEW DAY. I'm Ryan Nobles, in for Boris Sanchez.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Good to see you, Ryan. I'm Christi Paul.

So, here's the question, was the fatal shooting on a movie set in New Mexico preventable? We have new questions about safety on the set and the handling of the gun fired by actor Alec Baldwin.

NOBLES: And the moment so many parents have been waiting for, a meeting to decide on possible approval of a COVID vaccine for young children.

PAUL: It's the critical week for President Biden too. Democrats are inching closer to that deal on trillions in spending. His agenda is on the line here before he leaves for a climate summit overseas.

NOBLES: And from fires to floods, California, is bracing today for potentially catastrophic weather. Evacuations are ordered in the face of a severe storm.

(MUSIC)

NOBLES: Good morning. Thank you so much for being with us. It is Sunday, October 24th. Hope you're having a great Sunday morning.

PAUL: Yeah, we are so glad to have everybody with us today and waking up, we appreciate you giving us that time of your morning.

NOBLES: And Christi, we're going to begin this morning with new information and new concerns over the safety conditions after that fatal shooting on a film set involving Alec Baldwin.

A candlelight vigil was held last night in New Mexico for Halyna Hutchins. They were there to remember the cinematographer who was killed when Baldwin fired a prop gun with live ammunition and wondering whether her death could have been prevented. PAUL: Now, a lot of people in attendance work in the film and TV

industry and they say this accident shows why Hollywood production crews had planned to go on strike just last week over safety conditions on sets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REBECCA STAIR, LOCATION MANAGER, IATSE LOCAL 480: We were about to strike this past Monday for safer conditions. And if the world didn't believe us about what's going on, maybe they believe us now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PAUL: There are reports as well that safety protocols were already being disregarded before that shooting. According to the "L.A. Times" three people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment, say there were two previous accidental prop gun discharges on set.

NOBLES: Yeah, and they also say that some of the crew members left the film just hours before the shooting over working conditions.

And we want to talk about this now, joining me is retired armorer John Patteson. He was the armorer on the set of the film "The Crow" following the accidental shooting death of actor Brandon Lee.

John, thank you so much for joining us.

This "L.A. Times" report saying some of the crew members quit over safety concerns, how troubling is that when you hear that news?

JOHN PATTESON, RETIRED ARMORER: It's extremely, extremely troubling and the fact that there's no one there from the crew that, instead of, you know, calling a meeting and getting that squared away.

NOBLES: So, John, you obviously have unique insight into this given your history, given that you've been on sets where situations like this have happened before. The armorer who prepared the prop gun used by Baldwin recently said that she was nervous about her last project, which was her first as head armorer. Does that give you any insight into her level of experience? Would that be concerning?

PATTESON: It would be extremely concerning. It's, you know, it's something when a member of the crew has some concerns, they should be dealt with and not, you know, kept to themselves, especially if you're doing the weapons and handling explosives and anything, actually. It should be discussed.

NOBLES: I think one of the things that a lot of us that don't have familiarity with movie sets keep asking is, why are there even live rounds on a set at all?

[07:05:07]

Why is that even necessary to get to the point where it could end up in a gun that would be used on a set? Why would there ever be a need for live ammunition?

PATTESON: There never is. To get the nomenclature right, when you refer to live ammunition, that is like a factory round where it has an actual primer in the base of the round, and it has gun powder in and has a projectile either jacketed or pure lead that is only -- is not supposed to be on a set. It's something -- if you're going hunting, that's great. But to have one on the set is not acceptable at all.

NOBLES: So to your point then, if it shouldn't be on the set at all, there's absolutely no reason it should make it into a prop gun that has been described as a cold gun, which is what reportedly happened on the set. A number of things would have to have gone wrong for it to get to that set, right?

PATTESON: Yeah. And the nomenclature -- when people speak about the ammunition, what is used, we use blanks that have a powder charge in them and the opening of the cartridge is actually crimped shut by a special machine so that when the gun is fired, the powder goes off. There's no projectile in there. It's simply burning gas coming out the muzzle of the gun and there should never be any live -- so-called live rounds.

NOBLES: So that point, is this -- is it even necessary to have blanks? We've reached to an age where the post-production CGI effects have become so incredible, is it necessary to even use blanks on a set?

PATTESON: Under some situations it would be, but it depends on the effect you're looking for. If you're firing into a, you know, an object that is supposed to disappear from the gas coming out of the pistol or rifle, but, you know, it's something that's -- it's a situation type of thing. It depends on what you're looking for, what the director is looking for, and you have to go through this and, you know, make some decisions.

NOBLES: So you obviously have unique perspective on this being that you were the armorer on the set of "The Crow" which is the last time there was a tragedy like this and that was the death of Brandon Lee. First of all, are you surprised that this happened again, given how tragic that was the first time around? And are there any lessons you learned from that experience that you still take with you today?

PATTESON: Yeah. As far as that goes, yeah, it's kind -- it's not kind of, it is definitely concerning when something like this happens, what has just happened. The words that I'm hearing people say, I'm somewhat cautious about what actually happened because there seems to be a tendency to use verbiage that doesn't really cover what is supposed to be happening there. It's -- it is very concerning that after everything that's gone on and the fact that the gun was given to an actor and that actor actually pointed it at some crew -- some of the members of the show, it doesn't make any sense to me why that was even a situation necessary.

NOBLES: So you're suggesting that Alec Baldwin should have been a little bit more responsible in this regard? That that's one of the lessons, one of the rules on a set when dealing with even prop guns, that you never point those in the direction of any human being?

PATTESON: Exactly. And why he was given a gun and then there was no continuation from the armorer, the armorer should have been on there and decided whether or not he should have a loaded gun at that point. I mean, it wasn't part of the scene from what I've been informed.

[07:10:08]

So I don't understand what was the -- you know, it's amazing that something didn't happen sooner.

NOBLES: Right. John Patteson, your expertise very helpful here. One thing we're learning is that, A, we don't know the full story from start to finish, and, B, there isn't one person responsible for this, it sounds like there was a breakdown in the chain of command and responsibilities along the line. So, hopefully, we're going to get to the bottom of this as time goes on.

John Patteson, thank you so much for joining us.

PATTESON: You're welcome. Thank you.

NOBLES: And to politics now, another deadline missed but still no deal on President Biden's social spending plan. The president and congressional Democrats are scrambling to reach a deal, but sticking points remain.

PAUL: Yeah, and efforts to win over two holdouts, Senator Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema, that is still ongoing.

I want to bring in CNN congressional reporter Daniella Diaz.

Daniella, good to see you this morning. Talk to us about the status of this right now as we know it.

DANIELLA DIAZ, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Christi, Ryan, Democrats are once again on track to miss their next self-imposed deadline of October 31st. That is the deadline that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi set for this two-track plan to pass the massive economic bill that progressives and Joe Biden want and as a result progressives are holding up the bipartisan infrastructure bill, a separate bill that already passed the Senate that just needs to pass the House before it gets to President Joe Biden's desk for signature and passage.

But the problem here is, these two moderate Democratic senators you mentioned, Kyrsten Sinema and Joe Manchin. They are still negotiating details of this plan with President Joe Biden and other Democratic leaders because they don't agree with the original $3.5 trillion legislation that was written for this massive economic bill that would expand the nation's social safety net.

Now, there's a lot of sticking points here. Bear with me as I talks about them. The key elements of this plan are still up in the air including how to pay for this plan after Kyrsten Sinema said she wouldn't support a corporate tax. Now, Democrats are now actively exploring a new tax on billionaires to help finance this package. This proposal would affect about 700 ultra wealthy taxpayers, specifically people that have had more than $1 billion in assets and more than $100 million in income for more than three straight years. This would generate billions of dollars in revenue and could help pay for this bill.

So, the average American is not going to be affected by this tax. Instead, it will be billionaires.

Other sticking points here that these senators are negotiating is the expansion of Medicare, something Senator Bernie Sanders, a progressive who is the Senate Budget chairman who has -- Senate Budget Committee chairman who has been negotiating this bill, he wanted the expansion of Medicare, but that's still on the table and could be chopped from this bill.

Another program that could be -- that has -- is out and Democrats are trying to figure out what to replace it with is the clean energy performance program, which is a cornerstone of climate policy. So, now there's $150 billion that Democrats are trying to figure out what to replace this with to combat climate change, especially before President Joe Biden heads to Glasgow for the climate summit in less than two weeks.

Now, another thing is prescription drug price reform which Kyrsten Sinema is a roadblock on. But, look, we caught up with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday and she expressed optimism and said Democrats are 90 percent there. But the bottom line is t There is a lot of things that need to be negotiated and progressives are not going to support the bipartisan infrastructure bill by October 31st unless there's a framework for the Senate economic bill -- Ryan, Christi.

NOBLES: Daniella, sounds like there's so much work to do. I think all of us on Capitol Hill need to have some sort of a pool to actually see if any of either of these bills are going to get voted on because there's just so much work to do.

DIAZ: Absolutely, Ryan. You know that better than anyone as a congressional correspondent.

NOBLES: All right. Thank you, Daniella.

PAUL: So do stay with us, because millions of U.S. children could be eligible for the COVID vaccine soon. When to expect a decision and why experts say this could be critical for ending the pandemic.

Also, Barack Obama making a rare personal appearance on the campaign trail. Still ahead, we'll explain what the former president told voters as he drummed up support for two Democrats in crucial state races for governor.

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[07:18:45]

PAUL: It sometimes feels like a rare sight but President Obama is on the campaign trail particularly in two governor races that have national implications. The former president attended a rally for Terry McAuliffe in Virginia and for Governor Phil Murphy who's running for re-election in New Jersey.

NOBLES: Yeah. The former president is still a big draw. The strategy in the two races, tie the opponents to Donald Trump and to get voters to the polls.

CNN national correspondent Athena Jones has the details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATHENA JONES, CNN NATIOANL CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Christi and Ryan.

President Obama hitting the campaign trail again on Saturday, campaigning in Virginia and New Jersey. Those are the only two states in the country that have governors races this year, and both races are being viewed as a harbinger of what Democrats could face in 2022. Of course, Democrats hoping to keep both state houses in the blue column. The event in New Jersey focused on early in-person voting, which began on Saturday. The first time voters in New Jersey are able to go and vote in person early.

People can vote early by mail as well and, of course, on Election Day. And so, President Obama coming out to urge turnout, urge people in New Jersey a state where registered Democrats outnumber registered Republicans by about a million, making sure they all come to the polls.

[07:20:01]

The president hailing Governor Murphy's record and slamming his opponent, also seeking to tie his opponent, Jack Ciattarelli, to President Trump, blasting him for speaking at a Stop the Steal rally. Take a listen to some of what he said.

BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT: When you have a candidate who spoke at a stop the steal rally, you can bet he's not going to be a champion of democracy. Apparently, the Phil's opponent says, well, he didn't know it was a rally to overturn the results of the last election. He didn't know it.

Come on. When you're standing in front of a sign that says "Stop the Steal" and there's a guy in the crowd waving a Confederate flag, you know this isn't a neighborhood barbecue. You know it's not a League of Women voters rally. Come on. Come on, man.

JONES: So there you have it, linking him to President Trump not nearly as popular as in other parts of the country and this is all about turnout. This event was held in Newark, the heart of Essex County. Essex County is a Democratic stronghold in New Jersey with the most registered Democrats of any of the counties. And so, the goal here is to get all those people out early or on election day and make sure they vote -- Christi, Ryan.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NOBLES: Athena Jones, thank you.

Jury selection started last week in the trial for the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. A small town finding impartial jurors is easier said than done.

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[07:25:56]

NOBLES: Jury selection started this week in the trial of the killing of Ahmaud Arbery. The 25-year-old was fatally shot while jogging early last year. The three men who chased down and ultimately killed Arbery have pleaded not guilty to malice and felony murder charges. Sixty people have been questioned in the jury selection process since Monday.

Michael Moore joins us to dig deeper on the trial. He's a former U.S. attorney for the middle district of Georgia.

Thank you for being here.

So, this hasn't been an easy process. Yeah, this hasn't been an easy process, you know, forming this jury. They've had to bring hundreds of people in. It's obviously difficult. This is a relatively small town, so many people have pretty strong opinions about the case.

So, what considerations are made in the courtroom when you're attempting to form an impartial jury in a case that so many people know so much about?

MICHAEL MOORE, FORMER U.S. ATTORNEY, MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA: Yeah, this case has a lot of complicating factors, too, not to least of which, of course, is COVID and when you're bringing in this number of people that slows things down as well. So, the judge has to keep things moving, the lawyers need to make informed questions and decisions about which jurors know something about the case, may have some predisposition one way or another. And at the same time, they have to try to do the balancing act of keeping things in perspective, while it's an important case, it's a homicide case and doesn't need to be seen as something that's going to drag out for months at a time even though probably the jurors who have been summoned in mass may feel that way with a thousand of their neighbors.

So, it is a small community. It's a tight-knit community, but at the same time, the lawyers have a job to do on both sides, to find impartial people who have not formed or expressed at least decisions about the guilt or innocence of these three men.

NOBLES: So there are some people who have said they fear potential repercussions for serving as part of this trial, no matter what the verdict ends up being. So how much of that do you take into account when forming a jury?

MOORE: You know, that's a problem, frankly. Jury service is something that folks, it's their civic obligation and they have the need and right to do it and an expectation they will participate in it, but in a case where tensions have been escalated, that poses a problem oftentimes.

You know, I think especially over the last several years, the problem has been that the way that communities react or certain members of the community reacts would be some type of oftentimes violence or threats towards people they disagree with. That's become the norm frankly, and we see that whether or not we let kids wear a mask to school, we see school board members threatened by uprisings.

And so, the jurors are not immune from that type of information. They're sitting here thinking in this community. If I make a decision one way or the other, am I going to face backlash from the other side? So, it's a legitimate threat and gives the lawyers one more level I guess of the onion to peel back to find out if, in fact, they can select a jury that's fair both to the state and the defendants in the case.

It makes it -- it makes it difficult. It's a complicating factor, but it's surmountable. But it's something they have to deal with and will require them to ask deeper questions, and may require the court to intervene as well, to make sure that the questions that are posed are not targeted to remove good jurors from the panel with this false sense that, well, are you terribly concerned, 100 times, they start wondering, well, maybe I should be concerned?

NOBLES: Right.

MOORE: Maybe I need to be afraid of my safety? So, you have to -- you really do have to walk a balancing -- do a balancing act and I think a lot of that will be the responsibility and the function of the trial judge here.

NOBLES: It seems they will attempt to keep the trial in Glynn County. Should there be a consideration of moving it? I mean, I think we're probably too far down the road for that to happen, but should they have taken that into account?

MOORE: I think it likely was obviously and something that most defendants asked for in a case of any notoriety. But a community has an interest and a right to have the disputes and the criminal actions resolved in that area. That gives the people who live there the confidence in the system. It gives witnesses the convenience. It gives the prosecution convenience. If we were just going to move things to a neutral place, we put all our prosecutors on some island, out in the sea, and just try trials out there.

So the goal again, is, it's not the fact that the store has been in the press or that this area is where the crime happened. But it's rather to find people by jurors in the community who can set any type of preconceived or pre-expressed ideas aside, and be fair and impartial. That means you have to be totally is -- you've got to be a blank slate and have never heard of the case, or I've never seen some clip on the news is that you just can't formed an opinion that would keep you from listening to the evidence and basing the decision on the evidence and the law that the judge gives you as conclusion of the trial.

So lawyers asked for change of venue all the time, the preference is always to try the case, to the extent that you can, in the area of where the events occurred.

RYAN NOBLES, CNN ANCHOR: So you mentioned preconceived perceptions that people might have, obviously, the biggest issue kind of weighing over the top of this entire case is race. And some of the jurors were asked if they think the Confederate flag, for instance, is a racist symbol. And the defense has been arguing that the case has nothing to do with race. How do you think that dynamic is going to play out over the course of the trial?

MOORE: I think it's likely going to be an issue of whether or not race was involved, was that a motivator, is that something that heightened the tensions on the day in question. I mean, to say that this trial has nothing to do with race would be a little bit like saying, you know, Christmas has nothing to do with Christmas trees.

I mean, the fact of the matter is that there's evidence in the case that at least one defendant has said that another thing that (inaudible) some racial slur at the time. There's a question now about whether or not the old Confederate flag, the battle flag is often seen as the sort of a slap against integration that was in place at the time, that that flag was on a license plate on one of the defendant's vehicles. And so, whether or not that information should come in. Whether or not the defendant would have reacted the same way had this been a young white man or young white woman jogging through their community, would they have loaded up in their pickup trucks with firearms and chased them down.

So, it is something that sort of -- it's the lens through which the case is likely to be viewed. But in reality, there is evidence in the case that we know about already from public statements and from public reporting, that there are some, there will be evidence about racial bias and race feelings in this case.

So, it's a tough case for lawyers to move around that. And, again, I imagine that jurors are not immune either to see protesters and supporters, and different groups gather. And so these things will be in play. It's a -- it's just one of those things that the lawyers are going to have to move forward with the hand that they have and play the cards with -- that they've been dealt. And in this case, by all appearance is race, may very well have been a factor in what happened down in Brunswick.

NOBLES: All right. Michael Moore, a former US Attorney, thank you so much for your expertise. We appreciate it. Obviously, a lot of attention going to be paid to this case as it moves forward.

MOORE: Glad to be with you, thank you.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR: Somebody maybe watching this morning, instead of home where they're suffering from abuse and violence. The CEO of the National Domestic Violence Hotline is talking to me next about what their advocates are hearing from people right now after COVID, and also after the murder of Gabby Petito, which too many stood up questions about abuse.

[07:34:13]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAUL: The murder of Gabby Petito has prompted important conversations about potential domestic violence and abuse. Now earlier on in the pandemic, we spoke with Katie Ray-Jones. She's the CEO of the National Domestic Violence Hotline. And we talked to her about the calls that they're getting, the stories their advocates are hearing. Well, I just talked with her again, and she told me the calls for help and the scenarios they're hearing about are frightening and heartbreaking, and things aren't always the way we envision them to be.

So Katie Ray Jones is with us now. And, Katie, I know that we talked through the pandemic and some of the stories that you were hearing of women who wanted to call but couldn't, family members who may be called on their behalf because quarantine kept us isolated with abusers at that time. So compare and contrast for us what it was then to what you're seeing now, what you're hearing from people now.

KATIE RAY-JONES, CEO, NATIONAL DOMESTIC VIOLENCE: Thank you, Christi, so much for continuing to shed light on the issue of domestic violence. You're absolutely right. During the pandemic, it was incredibly difficult for victims and survivors to be able to reach out.

[07:40:00]

What we've seen since the start of the pandemic is nearly 31,000 individuals have reached out to state that COVID was being used by their partner to further isolate, manipulate, coerce, create fear. Since we've seen the country slowly start to reopen up, we're seeing ebbs and flows in our contact volume, where survivors are continuing to express that either their partners not letting them get vaccinated, or still creating fear in the home, preventing them to return to work, or saying it's not safe for their kids to leave the house and preventing access to medical treatment. So we know the pandemic is still being leveraged in the homes of so many.

PAUL: What are the stories you're hearing from people? I just want to try to convey to folks who are sitting at home, what else is happening behind closed doors.

RAY-JONES: I think, Christi, as you and I talked over the years, one of our biggest challenges is that people often think domestic violence has to be physical violence. The stories we hear are deeply rooted in emotional abuse, financial abuse, in one instance, the survivor was trying to work from home and her abusive partner would cut the cords on her computer, sabotage her online accessibility, to really threatening her ability to work and gain financial independence.

So abuse can really look a lot of different ways. And I think it continues to remain important that it may not be a bruise or physical violence, but the emotional abuse, as you said, the isolation that occurs in the homes is incredibly intimidating, but it really prevents a lot of people from breaking free from the violence.

PAUL: And speaking of isolation, that was something that I think I recognized when watching the video of Gabby Petito. I know that you cannot speak to that case directly, but we've all watched that. I mean, she was in a van, in another state, with one person. And it has generated a lot of conversations about domestic violence and about abuse. So what do you think we can learn from what we have seen in that case?

RAY-JONES: I think it's so interesting that every time we see domestic violence in the media, it gives us the opportunity to learn really about the complexities that exists in these relationships. I think, Christi, the first time you and I spoke, and we were talking about emotional abuse that was happening in a relationship. We see the isolation here. And at times, we've talked about many people would say, why doesn't someone just call the police. And we know that oftentimes there could be police involvement, and it doesn't have the end result that maybe we all think that it would.

So ensuring that we have really a solid community response for survivors that when they reach out someone is there to answer the phone, that when they're seeking shelter, there's a bed available. When they need counseling, there is no waiting list. These are all critical pieces and steps in the journey for someone to really break free from that relationship and have a life that's free of violence.

PAUL: Katie Ray-Jones with the National Domestic Violence Hotline, you and your advocates are doing some of the most important work. Thank you so much for everything you do. And thank you for talking to us.

RAY-JONES: Thank you, Christi.

PAUL: And, listen, if you or someone you know needs assistance, please call 1-800-799-SAFE or text START to 88788, that is the National Domestic Violence Hotline. We'll be right back.

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[07:47:21]

PAUL: Oh my goodness, California can't catch a break. They've had that historic fire season. The state is now bracing for flood and rain.

NOBLES: Yes. More than 6 million people are under flash flood and flood watches. There's evacuation orders and warnings in place as well. CNN meteorologist Tyler Mauldin joins us now live. Tyler, California obviously needs this rain, but there's a concern that this is actually too much too quickly, right?

TYLER MAULDIN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes. And it's not just the amount of rain that we're expecting, Ryan, it's also where the rain is falling. So this powerful and what will likely be historic storm system is already producing rainfall across Central and Northern California, and up into the Pacific Northwest.

This area is the same area that, yes, is dealing with the drought but also has plenty of burn scars. For that reason, a flood watches in effect because we could see up to 10 inches of rainfall which will produce likely some debris flows in areas such as the upslope of the Sierra Nevada, is where we do have the Dixie and the Caldor fire. And you can't forget about the Kent Fire (ph) just a few years ago. So these recent burns could lead to really dicey situation today and tomorrow across that portion of California. And then we also have to factor in, guys, the snowfall, and we could be measuring the snow and feet across the Sierra Nevadas.

PAUL: Alrighty. Tyler Mauldin, good to see you. Thank you.

NOBLES: And, of course, we all just want the pandemic to end and this is one of those weeks where a single meeting could bring us a step closer to that goal.

PAUL: Yes. A committee could soon approve the Pfizer vaccine for children as young as five. Here's CNN's Nadia Romero.

NADIA ROMERO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Christi and Ryan, this can be a game changer for parents who are trying to keep their kids safe during this pandemic. Pfizer says its vaccine for kids is about 90% effective, and the FDA says that the benefits outweigh the risk.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROMERO (voice-over): Just how soon could kids, ages five to 11, get a COVID-19 vaccine. On the current timeline, it could be as soon as November. The first the FDA and CDC must sign off. Tuesday, an FDA advisory committee is scheduled to meet to discuss whether to recommend authorization for the Pfizer vaccine for kids five to 11.

ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: It's going to protect them. Obviously it's also going to add population immunity to our broader population, will help bring infection numbers down. It is going to be one more important step towards getting to the end of this pandemic.

ROMERO (voice-over): Kids make up about a quarter of all COVID cases in the US. Nationwide data shows COVID cases, hospitalizations and deaths all declining, health experts point to the vaccine.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If we add children to that mix, we can get our numbers way higher up and hopefully prevent any more variants from coming.

[07:50:06]

ROMERO (voice-over): But Pfizer officials will not only have to convince FDA vaccine advisors for emergency use authorization, ultimately, it's up to parents of kids ages five to 11 to allow them to get the vaccine. A recent Kaiser Family Foundation survey in September found about a third of parents in that age range say they would take a wait and see approach, and another third of parents say they let their kids get the vaccine right away.

JHA: Talk to your pediatrician if you have questions, but we know that 6 million kids have had COVID over a million in the last six weeks. They can get it, they can spread it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROMERO: So if the FDA and the CDC authorized the vaccine, kids ages five to 11 could potentially be fully vaccinated by the winter holidays. Ryan, Christi.

PAUL: Nadia, thank you so much. So, record numbers of workers have quit their jobs this year. Some experts say burnout during the pandemic is one of the many reasons but that doesn't have to happen if you're staying well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEANIE CHANG, LICENSED MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPIST: Stress is a part of life. Burnout, not necessarily so.

I was at journalism, I actually loved it. But the bottom line is I wasn't managing my stress, I was ignoring it. So even in my early 20s, I went into burnout and left the field. You can love what you do but go into burnout because you're not managing your stress effectively.

Stress is where you're very overwhelmed and you're also still, believe it or not, hopeful that you can change that. Were burnout, you're more hopeless. You lost interest in the things you used to enjoy. You don't feel like you're valued at work. You're doing too much or not feeling challenged.

No one is immune to burnout. So the best way is to manage our stress each day. What are your coping mechanisms, what are the things that get you excited in life.

I've watched Korean dramas to help me express my emotions. I also enjoy taking walks. Being active really helps me. Pets can also be a source of comfort that you need.

Number one thing, of course, and it's not just because I'm a therapist, is to seek professional help. There is no one right answer except doing what's best for you and prioritizing that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Staying well is brought to you by Abbot, life to the fullest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NOBLES: We do have some breaking news coming into CNN right now. Two key US senators traveling to Delaware today to meet with President Biden's. Sources telling CNN Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin will be with the President today.

Of course, the senator from West Virginia has been a bit of a headache for the President during negotiations over the infrastructure deal and the social safety net expansion. With 50 votes in the Senate, though, he is a critical vote if President Biden wants to pass trillions of dollars that are critical for his economic agenda. Of course CNN's Phil Mattingly is going to have more coming up on "Inside Politics" which is straight ahead at 8:00 am Eastern.

And I can't believe we're talking about this but it is, Christi, just 61 days until Christmas. I know you probably have the countdown clock there ready to go. So if you haven't done any shopping yet, you might want to start.

PAUL: I have done shopping. I can't believe it's only 61 days. You've heard that words supply chain chaos. Well, that's about what we're feeling. It's going to be very real for any of us who are buying gifts. CNN's Vanessa Yurkevich explains why.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In this small New Jersey office, a herculean attempt is underway. It's the unofficial Logistics Center for Carrera Revell working desperately to get their toys into the US in time for this holiday season.

FRANK TIESSEN, PRESIDENT, CARRERA REVELL: OK, Just giving you an update on the container situation in the moment.

YURKEVICH: President Frank Thiesen is manning the operation.

Had you ever worked in logistics before?

TIESSEN: Only peripherally, not directly.

YURKEVICH: Why did you have to get directly involved into logistics?

TIESSEN: Because of the global supply chain challenges that we are facing.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Cargo vessels, order numbers and arrival dates, all tracked with precision.

TIESSEN: Pretty much the first thing in the moment morning is really checking the backlog in the warehouse.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Boxes of toys of the well-known slot car maker are stuck in their warehouses in China, waiting for a ride.

TIESSEN: We still have about 25-30 containers which are just missing, which will not be here.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): That's 30% of their holiday product, just one of many companies dealing with a supply chain nightmare. With port congestion, containers shipped in May are just arriving to Carrera Revell's US warehouse in Atlanta, five months behind schedule.

ANGELA HIGGS, PRESIDENT/CEO, PBL GLOBAL LOGISTICS: We have seen such a surge in the last 90 days.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Angela Higgs runs the freight forwarding company for Carrera Revell, tasked with receiving the toys and getting them out to retailers as quickly as possible.

HIGGS: It's been one delay after another. And we, of course been, pushing and pushing, and pushing but these are delays are inevitable right now.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): With nearly every US port facing a backlog, the warehouse is using all of them, piecing together a working supply chain.

HIGGS: We're just going everywhere we can. Otherwise these goods are not going to get to the stores, and I'm not going to have anyone missing out on their toys this season.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): To try to help with that, President Biden announced two major ports in California will move to operate 24/7. But Tiessen, the problem now moves from the sea to the land.

Does that help you guys?

TIESSEN: No, it doesn't help. It doesn't alleviate the problem which we then have once the containers are off board. There are not enough trucks, there are not enough freight trains to move the containers inland.

YURKEVICH (voice-over): Vanessa Yurkevich, CNN, East Brunswick, New Jersey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL: And thank you to all of those people that are working so hard to make it happen for us. We hope you have a great morning. Go make some great memories this week. And thank you, Ryan, for waking up early.

NOBLES: Thanks for having me, Christi.