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New Day Sunday

Biden To Sign Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill Tomorrow; House Democrats Hope To Pass Social Spending Bill This Week; Biden To Meet With Chinese President In Virtual Summit Tomorrow; Queen Elizabeth To Miss Remembrance Day Ceremonies; Christmas Trees May Be In Shorter Supply This Year Amid Hot Demand; Eco-Friendly Colorado Neighborhood Was Supposed To Be Global Example, Until New Developer Moved In; Rodgers Back On The Field. Aired 7-8a ET

Aired November 14, 2021 - 07:00   ET

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


[07:00:02]

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BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Go to CNNHeroes.com right now to vote for your favorite hero.

(MUSIC)

SANCHEZ: Good morning. Thanks for waking up with us. It's Sunday, November 14th. I'm Boris Sanchez.

AMARA WALKER, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Amara Walker, in for Christi Paul.

Good morning to you, by the way, Boris. You look great in burgundy red. SANCHEZ: Much appreciated. Yeah, you too.

WALKER: Very nice. Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Solid choice.

WALKER: I'm setting you up for that.

A lot of news to get to this morning, after months of negotiations, debate and delays, President Biden is getting ready to sign the bipartisan infrastructure bill into law tomorrow.

SANCHEZ: Yeah, the White House says the president will highlight how the $1.25 trillion bill benefits middle-class Americans. The signing ceremony is said to include members of both party and mayors and governors.

WALKER: The other major piece of the Biden agenda, the Build Back Better plan which hinges on West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin. Democrats will be back at work tomorrow trying to coming up with a version of the social spending bill that Manchin will support.

SANCHEZ: An elusive target it's proven to be. CNN White House reporter Jasmine Wright joins us now from the White House.

Jasmine, the president hitting the road this week to sell the infrastructure plan. A lot of Americans, though, concerned about the price of things. Inflation, rising dramatically. What is the Biden plan to address inflation?

JASMINE WRIGHT, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, Boris, that big bill the president is scheduled to sign tomorrow is going to be a part of that plan, really as officials hope that this bill, once it is kind of in motion, is going to start tamping down on some of those inflation concerns.

But tomorrow's a big day for the president as he signs the first part of his two-pronged economic agenda after months and months, as you just said, and he's invited, rather, both Republicans and Democrat to kind of participate in this election. And it's really two-pronged as the conversation revolves around inflation and higher gas prices and more for everyday goods that Americans are spending.

The president is hoping that really signing this bill and getting it in motion will show the country that Democrats are able to deliver and produce results, and it really, hopefully, as officials have been touting over the last few weeks, is that they believe that this bill, in addition to the build back better plan that has not yet been passed, will really start tamping down on these inflation concerns as they continue to call it a top priority and a big deal that they know that Americans want them to respond to.

So, we will see the president yet tomorrow really expected to sign that bill and then we'll see him take the country, he's going to New Hampshire and Michigan, really to sell the components of this large bill, showing that Americans his administration works. We will see the rollout of cabinet officials doing the same over the

course of the few days, really trying to cement what is a -- what they call a major victory for the president for this infrastructure bill. As really the economic concerns start to circle around this administration -- Boris, Christi.

SANCHEZ: Jasmine Wright from the White House, thank you so much.

House Democrats hoping to vote this week on President Biden's build back better plan as Jasmine noted. If they do the focus will shift to winning over one key senator and that's West Virginia's Joe Manchin.

WALKER: Manchin, Manchin, Manchin. That's right.

CNN congressional reporter Daniella Diaz joining us now from Capitol Hill.

Good morning, Daniella.

So where do things stand with the president's social spending plan?

DANIELLA DIAZ, CNN CONGRESSIONAL REPORTER: Amara, Boris, now that the House has passed this bipartisan infrastructure bill that Jasmine mentioned that will be signed by President Joe Biden tomorrow, all eyes turn to this massive economic bill that would expand the nation's social safety net, the second part of the infrastructure agenda that White House wants to pass.

This bill, of course, would have funding that would combat climate change, would have universal pre-K, expand child care, expand the child tax credit. These are provisions that would help Americans directly, which is why progressives and moderates and Democratic leaders want to pass this bill as well as the White House.

[07:10:02]

But, look, there are still a lot of issues up in the air with this bill, of course, as you mentioned, with Senator Joe Manchin not offering assurances yet that he would support this bill. And, of course, Democratic leaders need his support for this bill to pass the senate.

Some of the issues he's raised concerns about is about the country's inflation. He's concerned that this bill would make inflation worse in the country, at least short term based on research he has. He's also pushed back on provisions to reduce methane emissions, opposed a Medicare expansion. He's demanded changes to the tax provisions in the house proposal and resisted measures aimed at helping undocumented immigrants that is currently a provision in the House version of this bill.

Meanwhile, a group of House moderates say that they won't vote for this bill until they get a final CBO score. Of course, the Congressional Budget Office score that would say how much this would cost which is not out yet. And the goal here is to try to have the house vote on this bill the week of November 15th. But, of course, without that CBO score, it's unclear whether house moderates will get behind this.

And not only is the economic bill a pressing issue here for Congress, Democratic leaders have to deal with the debt ceiling, the limit that -- the deadline for that is early December, as well as Congress has to address government funding that is also set to cease, the deadline is also early December.

So, these are really pressing issues that Congress is going to have to deal with. And, of course, Democratic leaders are concerned about the debt ceiling because they are going to have to go at this alone without Republican support, something Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell has said again and again to lots of issues here when the House and Senate come back this week -- Boris and Amara.

WALKER: Yeah, it definitely is a full plate for Congress in a short period of time.

Daniella Diaz, thank you.

SANCHEZ: Monday is also said to be a full day for President Biden. He's not only signing off on the infrastructure plan, he's also holding a high-stakes summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

The two leaders have spoken twice by phone this year, most recently a 90-minute conversation on September 9th.

WALKER: But this is the first virtual meeting between the two since Biden became president.

CNN's David Culver has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The leaders of the world's reigning and emerging super powers, heading into a much- anticipated virtual summit, as bilateral ties largely remain in deep freeze.

VICTOR SHIH, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN DIEGO: The summit is a preliminary sign that the relationship between the U.S. and China is getting back on a more normal track.

CULVER: U.S./China relations have been growing more tense since 2018, when former President Trump launched his trade war over Beijing's alleged unfair practices, slapping massive tariffs on Chinese goods. The downward spiral worsened amid the COVID-19 pandemic as Washington accused China of covering up its mishandling of the virus that would quickly bring the world to its knees.

A transition to the Biden administration did little to ease tensions. An early meeting between senior U.S. and Chinese officials, marred by fiery exchanges.

Recently, though, signs of progress. A high-profile Chinese tech executive detained on U.S. criminal charges in Canada was allowed to return to China. And just last week, both countries coming together in a joint effort to fight climate change, a heated rhetoric at times softening a bit.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We welcome the competition. We're not looking for conflict.

CULVER: In a letter published last week, President Xi said China is willing to enhance exchanges and cooperation across the board with the U.S.

JEAN-PIERRE CABESTAN, PROFESSOR, HONG KONG BAPTIST UNIVERSITY: What both sides need stabilization of the relationship which would allow both powers to peacefully coexist in the future.

CULVER: But the two sides still at odds over a wide range of thorny issues, from mounting military tensions across the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea, to tech and cyber security to human rights.

But likely topping the agenda experts say is what plunged U.S./China relations to a historic low to begin with. An agreement on trade might just lead to a thaw in ties between the two biggest economies.

David Culver, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: No doubt this is going to be a very important meeting.

Joining me now to discuss is CNN global affairs and staff writer for "The New Yorker," Susan Glasser, and Tyler Pager, a White House reporter for "The Washington Post."

Welcome to you both.

Susan, what do you think the tone will be of this meeting, considering I mean we just heard David Culver lay it out there, tensions have been rising between the superpowers?

SUSAN GLASSER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: First of all, remember, this is going to be another remote summit meeting unfortunately. President Biden was hoping to meet Xi in person, but Xi has not left China in two years since the beginning of the COVID pandemic.

[07:10:02]

So, it's going to be yet another virtual meeting. Two years into the Zoom era, we all know that's not ideal for establishing a personal relationship. So it's a summit, but it's still, you know, a summit at a distance. Taiwan has been a major point of friction in recent months and it's notable you had Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaking in advance of this.

But trade is going to be the key question. We don't know very much, interestingly, this far into the Biden presidency, you know, they've stuck which President Trump's tariffs and that's clearly not really the Biden (INAUDIBLE) so I think one key impression is do they come out of this with a market change in tone or not when it comes to economic relations between the two countries. That's what I would be looking for.

WALKER: And, Tyler, I mean the two leaders already have a history, right, and a rap port? We know that President Biden met Xi just before he became president in 2011.

Do you think President Biden will be able to leverage or use that existing relationship to his advantage and what could be tough talks?

TYLER PAGER, WHITE HOUSE REPORTER, THE WASHINGTON POST: Yeah. That's something the president when he was running for president often talked about quite a bit on the campaign trail, making the argument that he was best prepared to lead the United States on the world stage, and China has been -- and he has tried to make China at the forefront of his foreign policy, underscoring the need for the countries to both cooperate while they are also competing.

I think this is a key first step in trying to do so. As you mentioned, they have talked since Biden has become president but this is the first face-to-face virtual opportunity that the president of the United States has to really make the case with his Chinese counterpart to try to move forward on some of these critical issues.

And as Susan outlined, trade is going to be at the forefront of this meeting, but there's a whole host of issues that United States president is going to try to address that includes climate change, both countries announcing this week that they're going to work together to try to limit global emissions as the two biggest emitters in the world. They also want to work on nuclear proliferation. At the same time there are critical issues they don't see eye to eye on, the military buildup in the South China Sea, Taiwan, human rights violations.

So I think this is an important test for the president, how he strikes that balance between seeking cooperation while also being tough on the Chinese.

WALKER: Yeah. Absolutely, he'll have to find that balance. Susan, you were mentioning Taiwan as one of those prickly points of tension. Do you expect a lot of tough talk from President Biden? How do you think that conversation regarding Taiwan will go? It was just a few weeks ago that President Biden in a town hall on CNN said that, you know, if Taiwan were attacked by China, the U.S. would defend Taiwan.

GLASSER: Well, that's right. That was seen as a major sort of gaffe essentially, violating the U.S. kind of unstated policy of ambiguity when it comes to how much we would defend Taiwan. But the reality, I think, is that military analysts believe China has the ability, if it chooses to do so, militarily. The question would be, that could be an incredibly destabilizing move and really overhaul the world order.

So, the U.S. has tried to signal in ways, but Biden can't get too far ahead of himself. Remember, one thing to look for also is that the Chinese staged this very showy confrontation with Biden's officials at the initial meeting between, you know, top diplomats of the Chinese government and the new administration back in Alaska a few months ago. And, so, you know, that hangs over the relationship too. The other thing is, Biden has used what to the Chinese are very

inflammatory rhetoric, human rights is the center of our foreign policy he has said. The competition in the 21st center is between the West and autocracy like China and Russia, very polarizing to the Chinese rhetoric, and so will we hear more of that or will Biden, you know, sort of sit down and roll up his sleeves?

The other thing that's very notable is the timing of this summit from a Chinese domestic point of view, coming right after a major party (INAUDIBLE) that essentially cleared Xi Jinping to have a third term in office, getting rid of the pattern that had emerged in recent decades of not only consensus leadership, he has become a very almost a signal authoritarian leader as opposed to a type rule. But also extending his power and his tenure in office in a way that leaves him as one of the strongest Chinese leaders in decades.

And so, I think if Biden is serious about his rhetoric when it comes to democracies versus autocracies, that is on the table and the context for this meeting as well.

[07:15:02]

WALKER: Yeah, that's a very important point you mention, especially with President Xi Jinping coming into this meeting just after see mentioning his power, at least for -- cementing his power for at least another five years or so.

Tyler, you're mentioning trade as well. We know that China has been pushing for relief from the hundreds of billions of dollars of tariffs that were imposed under President Trump and interestingly Biden left those tariffs in place thus far. Do you think President Biden might budge on that during this meeting?

PAGER: I don't think we'll see many new agreements or changes to the arrangement in this meeting. U.S. senior officials have downplayed the likelihood of something along those lines or any sort of maneuvers that way. Obviously, trade is going to be on the agenda.

That is something President Biden will undoubtedly bring up. I think U.S. officials are also concerned that China is not holding up its end of the arrangement of the 2019 trade deal that President Trump negotiated. So, I think that is where I think we'll -- Biden will address is ensure that China tries to meet some of those commitments they made of buying U.S. products.

Again, I don't think we're likely to see any sort of changes or budging as you said from President Biden in this meeting. I think this is an opportunity to open the dialog and try to work towards some cooperation where they can, but I think it's unlikely we see anything new come out of it tomorrow.

WALKER: Yeah, that's exactly what White House officials have been saying. They've been downplaying any possibility of progress on the specific issues. Hey, like you both mentioned, one area of cooperation will be this action on climate change and the fact that they have that joint announcement saying that they would collaborate on that. Susan Glasser, Tyler Pager, appreciate you both. Thank you.

GLASSER: Thank you.

SANCHEZ: Developing from overnight, Queen Elizabeth's highly anticipated return to the public has been postponed. Next, we'll take you live to London to get the latest on why exactly the Queen pulled out just hours ahead of today's Remembrance Day service.

Still ahead this morning, why you may have a hard time finding your perfect Christmas tree this year.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:21:23]

WALKER: Buckingham Palace says Queen Elizabeth will not be making a public appearance at the Remembrance Day service after straining her back.

SANCHEZ: Now, the event was expected to be the first time the British monarch was seen in public after doctors advised her to rest after she spent a night in the hospital last month.

Let's get to CNN's Max Foster. He's live from Hampshire, England.

Max, the report is that she strained her back. Do we know how? What else do we know about what she's going through?

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: We've not been given any more information than that. It was a last-minute announcement. There's a huge amount of attention on the Queen appearing. We haven't seen her in public for a long time, so everyone was excited to see how she was doing. It has raised a concern that we've spoken to our royal sources and we're being told that back strain is unrelated to the reason she's been canceling other engagements recently. That was on medical advice she needed to rest.

So they're calming tensions to say this is a different reason. She was planning to go. The other reason, you know, as a Brit, it's surprise nothing to the see her here, as this is one of the events really in her diary. It's very much part of the rhythm of public life. She always tries to go.

She served in the military in World War II, of course, and she's only, you know, missed this event six times in the past, twice because she was pregnant, and four times because she was abroad. So, it's really surprising not to see her there. The source did address this when I spoke to them just a couple hours ago. The queen's deeply disappointed to miss the engagement which she considers one of the most significant engagements of the year.

Just to add, Boris, she has, despite the fact that we haven't seen her in public, she has been working still. She's been doing these remote engagements. Zoom calls effectively from Windsor castle.

They call that light duties I'm told by the source she hopes to continue her light official duties next week. So they're trying to, you know, address the concern, but not to overworry people at the same time.

SANCHEZ: Well, we hope that she recovers swiftly and that we'll see her out in public again soon.

Max Foster, thank you so much.

WALKER: Let's talk more about this with CNN royal commentator and historian Kate Williams.

Kate, I mean, we know that this is a significant event for the queen, something she does not like to miss. Are you concerned about her well being right now?

KATE WILLIAMS, CNN ROYAL COMMENTATOR: Yes. You're right. Just as Max is saying, Remembrance Sunday so significant for her, both as commander in chief of the armed forces and as someone who served during World War II, being there for the veterans is so important. It's really something that she would do anything to go to.

So it really does show how significant it is, how she's not missing lightly, she is in pain. She has back strain. I think a lot of us who have suffered from a backache can really sympathize. It's really impossible for her.

So, it is worrying the queen is in so much pain she can't go to this, because we often that she's 95. She's always in marvelous health. She's got the health of a 40-year-old, not of someone who's nearing a 100.

It is poignant reminder that the queen is nearing 100. She's not so young anymore.

Remembrance Sunday event I've been there a few times and it is a long day of standing in the cold. If you have a backache, it would be bad for you.

WALKER: You remind us of an important point, the Queen is 95 years old and really, it's remarkable just how sharp her mind is and the fact that her body seems to keep up most of the time, except for this particular day. At some point it seems she really needs to slow down.

[07:25:01]

What does this all mean for the future of the queen's reign, Kate?

WILLIAMS: Yes, you're right, because the queen really has turned monarchy into a very active role. She's not like the monarchs before that were reserved that the palace didn't do so much. She's been around the world more than 40 times. She's traveling. She's doing outings. Her engagement schedule is exhausting for anyone 30, 40, 50 years younger, let alone someone nearly 100. So, really now, I think she does have to really do more of what max

was saying, light duties, zoom tone calls, because the huge amounts of travel is really quite a strain on her. I think she's as sharp as a tack. She's determined to be there and wants to be the monarch, I suppose -- until she's no longer with us. It's quite hard for her.

We all admire the strength she's got and her work ethic, but a lot of us are saying you can take a step back, your majesty. You don't have to be out doing things every day. We understand.

WALKER: Absolutely understand. These are live pictures there from London as the celebration is getting under way for Remembrance Day a time that the country stops to honor British service members.

Kate, when do you think we might see the queen in public again?

WILLIAMS: Yes. Ever since she had her hospital stay three weeks ago, her first hospital stay in eight years, which was astonishing really her incredible health, couple glimpses of her driving around Windsor but haven't seen public engagements, which is why we were so looking forward to seeing her today.

I expect to see her over the next couple weeks, more Zoom speeches, but she would hope really within two or three weeks to be doing some kind of in person engagement, even if it's something less of a strain, something at Buckingham Palace which doesn't involve a huge amount of standing up because as we know for back pain, there's really not much you can do apart from rest. You have to rest and take it easy.

When you're the queen, someone who is one of the most active people in the United Kingdom, that's going to be very difficult for her.

WALKER: Absolutely. I'm sure difficult for the people who were really looking forward to seeing the queen once again in public. If my eyes are not deceiving me, that looks to be Prince William there on the side greeting the members, service members.

All right. Kate Williams, we'll leave it there. Thank you so much for your perspective.

And also more than 20 years after her death, Princess Diana's story is having a moment. Go inside her lasting legacy on a new episode on the CNN original series "DIANA". That's tonight at 9:00 on CNN.

SANCHEZ: We've been talking all morning about surging prices for everything. Gas and groceries. Now get ready to shell out more for your Christmas tree. Up next, the factors that farmers say have impacted this year's crop.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:32:16]

SANCHEZ: The Rockefeller Christmas tree has arrived in New York City, and this year's tree is a 79-foot Norway spruce weighing 12 tons. It will be decked out with more than 50,000 colored lights and topped with a Swarovski star. The official tree lighting still a few weeks away on December 1st.

WALKER: It's amazing trees come that big. But this all comes at a time when trees are harder to find and more expensive.

CNN's Karin Caifa talks to farmers to figure out why Christmas trees are in a crunch.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARIN CAIFA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Christmas trees are never far from Joncie Underwood's mind.

JONCIE UNDERWOOD, PARTNER, PINE VALLEY CHRISTMAS TREE: It's surprising how many people do things that you put them in the ground on the spring, and you're going to harvest them at, you know, November and December. It doesn't work that way.

CAIFA: At her family farm, Pine Valley Christmas Tree, in the northeast corner of Maryland the journey of planting seedlings in the field to a family living room is a long one.

UNDERWOOD: Once you plant them out, depending on the type of tree it may take six to ten years before you have a saleable tree.

CAIFA: From too much water to too little to pests, a lot can happen. It also means farmers like Underwood can't ramp up supply when demand spikes.

UNDERWOOD: Because it takes seven to ten years for your crop to, you know, mature, you don't have much choice about how many trees you can offer.

CAIFA: More Americans stayed at home for the holidays in 2020 because of the pandemic so Christmas trees were in high demand. Some sellers found themselves short. A consequence of the great recession more than a decade ago that put a lot of farmers out of business.

CARL HOLLOWAY, OWNER, HOLLOWAY'S CHRISTMAS TREE: We were actually sold out on about the 3rd of December. We had another load of trees come in and it was gone in a day and a half.

CAIFA: In southern California, Carl Holloway says he plants about 3,000 trees per year on the farm his father started in 1958.

HOLLOWAY: We grow a Monterey pine a beautiful tree, but a lot of people would rather have what they grew up with as children.

CAIFA: His crops fighting challenges like California droughts. He brings in about half the trees he sells each year, mostly balsam and grand firs from the Pacific Northwest, where tree cops have also been hit hard by fires and extreme hit. In Oregon, for example, one of the country's top Christmas tree producers, farmers only cut and sold 3.44 million trees in 2020, down 27 percent from 2015 according to the USDA.

HOLLOWAY: Because of that and because of labor shortages and other things, the price of the trees have gone up at least 100 percent in the last ten years.

CAIFA: All affecting Holloway's bottom line. But for both farmers, a hectic holiday season is family tradition.

UNDERWOOD: I love when our customers come in, and they say, you know, my child was a baby when I first started coming here and now they're bringing their children or their grandchildren.

[07:35:00]

CAIFA: Those deep roots may be a reason to appreciate a tree a little bit more this year.

In Elkton, Maryland, I'm Karin Caifa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANCHEZ: Thanks to Karin for that report.

Make sure to stick around this morning for "STATE OF THE UNION" as top Biden economic adviser Brian Deese joins Jake Tapper to discuss if and how the White House is going to get a handle on rising prices. That coming up at 9:00 right here on CNN.

WALKER: Going green is more than just a saying. It's a way of life for one community in Colorado. We're going to get a tour of the greenest neighborhood in America, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:40:15]

SANCHEZ: Nearly 200 nations reached an agreement yesterday after marathon talks at the United Nations COP26 summit. But critics say it doesn't go far enough to stem the urgent threat of climate change. In a sign of progress, the text references the role of fossil fuels in the climate crisis, something the group has tried and failed for years to acknowledge.

But language around reducing the use of coal wound up being watered down at the last minute after objections by India and other countries, something that many saw as a setback in addressing what experts have called a code red for humanity.

Going green and staying green is obviously far easier said than done, especially when money is at stake.

WALKER: That's right. Well, CNN's Bill Weir visited a neighborhood that was an eco-friendly paradise until a new developer moved in.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While they fuss and fight in Glasgow over a path to a carbon-neutral world, this gentleman knows how hard you have to fight just to build a net zero neighborhood. DAR-LON CHANG, GEOS COMMUNITY RESIDENT: I pay about $6 every month for

electricity.

WEIR: Dar-Lon Chang is an energy pioneer, battling to settle the greenest community in America, called Geos, conceived as a clean energy utopia in the Denver suburb of Arvada. Original plans called for nearly 300 homes all powered, heated, and cooled only by what radiates down from the sun and up from the earth.

RAINER GERBATSCH, GEOS COMMUNITY RESIDENT: On a day when it's like 10 degrees outside and you have the windows open, by 11:00 or so, you have close to 70 degrees in here.

WEIR: It's very toasty in here.

GERBATSCH: Yeah.

NORBERT KLEBL, ORIGINAL DEVELOPER, GEOS COMMUNITY: Look at this. The homes are offset. This is south.

WEIR: It's all the brainchild of an Austrian engineer named Norbert Klebl who first staggered the plots in a checkerboard so that each tightly constructed home, free of drafts and leaks, would get maximum free heat from the sun.

KLEBL: We harvest the Colorado sun in the winter time. When the sun is low down there, it floats in here and heats up the entire house.

WEIR: This means you need fewer solar panels to power the house, and your cars, and eight hours of battery backup. Since gas stoves can create the same amount of indoor pollution as living with a chain smoker and since natural gas is mostly made of planet cooking methane, rule one of Geos would be no gas. All electric.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So this is the geothermal unit.

WEIR: Using liquid to bring up energy from the earth's hot core, this machine heats and cools the house with virtually no pollution.

CHANG: If you go down to the core of the earth, it is as hot there as it is on the surface of the sun.

WEIR: It's closer. It's right there.

CHANG: Yes, yes.

WEIR: It's always on.

Dar-Lon believes geothermal will be the energy of the future. He should know. He spent over 15 years as an alternative fuel engineer at ExxonMobil.

CHANG: I saw no reason why we weren't using the drilling technologies at ExxonMobil to drill for hot rocks rather than oil and gas.

WEIR: But the company wasn't moving away from fossil fuels fast enough for his sense of urgency. He says when hurricanes knocked power from his Houston home and his homeowners association banned solar panels, he quit, packed, and moved to the greener pastures of Geos. The 28 completed homes with goats instead of lawn mowers felt like proof of a better way.

But then Norbert was forced to sell the rest of Geos in a divorce settlement. And despite their fierce objections, the new developer is now installing gas lines for the next phase of homes.

CHANG: The story of my neighborhood being a failed experiment in building without gas pipelines is not only false but it also endangers the transition away from methane gas needed this decade to prevent one way climate change.

WEIR: Since the Arvada City Council pledge to encourage more renewable energy a decade ago, Dar-Lon put on his no gas-hole shirt along with neighbors asked for their intervention.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've got homes that need to be converted that already exist, but the job here with the next phase of Geos has already been done for you.

WEIR: But so far, officials refuse to help Geos stay gas-free. It's a lesson that while over 100 nations led by the U.S. are pledging to drastically reduce methane emissions, all building codes are local and small towns worry that forcing a clean transition will bring lawsuits from big oil and gas, and their favorite lawmakers.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WALKER: Wow. A fascinating story. That was our Bill Weir reporting.

Still ahead, after his COVID controversy, Aaron Rodgers will be back on the field today with Green Bay, but another big quarterback is sidelined by the virus. From the pros to college, we have all things football after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WALKER: After missing one game due to a bout with COVID, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will suit up and play today.

[07:50:02]

SANCHEZ: Let's get straight to Carolyn Manno.

Carolyn, as Rogers returns, there is another future Hall of Fame quarterback that is not going to be playing because of COVID.

CAROLYN MANNO, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, the story continues. Good morning, guys.

Rodgers says that he's looking forward to getting back to what he does best which is play football. And he's going to start today for the first time since late October after contracting coronavirus. The quarterback forced to clarify misleading comments that he made before the season when he told reporters he was immunized. In truth, he is not vaccinated.

Packers' loss to the Chiefs last week without him, head coach Matt LaFleur telling reporters that the team is confident the veteran quarterback will be able to pick up where he left off on the field later today. But Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger has been ruled out for Pittsburgh game against Detroit after being placed on the league's COVID reserve list which is used for players to either tested positive for the virus or are deemed to be close contact.

Earlier this week, Roethlisberger confirmed that he is vaccinated. Mason Rudolph getting the start for Pittsburgh. In college football, number 13 Baylor hosting eight-ranked Oklahoma. The Bears are on the tradition of letting students rush the field before the game, and it was a sign of things to come.

Baylor ran all over Oklahoma's defense, racking up almost 300 yards and three touchdowns yesterday. Quarterback Gary Bohannon had two of them.

Get this though, guys, time ticking down. Game already in hand. And Baylor fans start to storm the field. The team had to shoe them back into the stands because Baylor made the questionable decision to call a time-out with 1 second left and kick a field goal. The fans were happy to try it again, though. Baylor upsetting Oklahoma. The Sooners playoff hopes now in serious doubt.

Michigan keeping its playoff hopes alive but just barely, down three with under four minutes to go against Penn State here. Wolverines quarterback Cade McNamara hitting Erick All on a short pass who takes it all the way, 47 yards for the touchdown. Sixth-ranked Michigan is escaping Happy Valley with a 4-point win.

Texas Tech and Iowa State, tied with three seconds left. Texas Tech kicker standing on his own 45 yard line and drills it, 62-yard winning field goal for the Red Raiders, the longest in college football this year and it breaks the school record, so a well deserve celebration there.

And Kansas pushing Texas to overtime. Devin Neal punching in here to bring Jayhawks back to within one. And when you got nothing to lose, you go for it all, and Jaylen Daniels getting it done.

The Kansas quarterback finding Jared Casey for the two-point conversion and the win, their first against an FBS team in two years, while handing Texas its first five-game losing streak since 1956. Indiana, meanwhile, losing its sixth straight. Over 100 hoosiers fans trying to numb the pain by going shirtless.

You guys, it was 36 degrees in Bloomington yesterday, a balmy 36. I'm not saying female sports fans are smarter than male sports fans, but I don't see a single woman out there doing this craziness.

WALKER: They get body heat from the people that were around them, right?

MANNO: Yeah. 36 degrees, let's all take our shirts off. SANCHEZ: Carolyn Manno, thanks so much.

MANNO: Sure.

WALKER: So, a woman in Louisiana is proving that age really is just a number. Breaking a world record in running at, you know, 105 years old.

Julia "Hurricane" Hawkins, there she is, started running at the age of 101 and recently secured the record in the 100-meter dash at the Louisiana senior games -- how cute is she -- crossing the finish line in just over a minute. Her advice to the rest of us, stay healthy and just keep running, because Hawkins says she's going to keep running for as long as she can.

I feel like a loser. Look at her go.

SANCHEZ: She's amazing. I'm not going to lie, there was one point in the video where she looked like she might trip, but she didn't. and I'm so glad she kept going, and clearly she is an example to all of us, isn't she?

WALKER: Her advice to us is to keep running. I hate running, so I got to do that.

Well, that's our time. Thanks for starting your morning with us.

"INSIDE POLITICS SUNDAY" is up next.

SANCHEZ: Amara, always great to be on with you.

Before we go, Sanjay Gupta has today's "Human Factor". Thanks for joining us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(SINGING)

JASON MOON, FOUNDER, WARRIOR SONGS: I was in Iraq for 11 months. It was when I got home, I noticed I wasn't who I was. I couldn't be in crowds. I was always watching every door. I felt weak, ashamed, and I hadn't been able to write songs for almost five years because of all the pain.

I started trying to write songs about it.

That's when I started getting e-mails from other veterans going, dude, this is exactly how I feel.

[07:55:02]

And that's when my healing really begins.

Warriors Songs is a non-profit that uses creative arts to help bring healing to veterans. We take a songwriter and we put them with a veteran. They take the trauma and transform it into a song. What happens to the veteran is nothing short of a transformation

because they've had a trauma that they couldn't express.

We've worked with about 250 veterans in the song-writing and we've given service to about 50,000 veterans, through the free CDs. When they speak the truth in songwriting, it gets them into the darkest places.

(END VIDEOTAPE)