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FBI Director Wray Warns about "Concerning Online Chatter" Regarding Events Surrounding Inauguration; FBI Director: 200 Plus Suspects Identified in Wake of Capitol Siege; 20,000 National Guard Troops Expected in D.C. for Inauguration. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired January 14, 2021 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:00]
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: Join CNN for all day live coverage of the historic inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President- elect Kamala Harris. It's all day, Wednesday until tomorrow.
You can follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @jaketapper. You can tweet the show @theleadcnn. Our coverage on CNN continues right now.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in the situation with him. We're following breaking news.
The United States right now on high alert for potential violence around the inauguration of President-elect Biden's just six days from now. Twenty thousand U.S. National Guard troops are expected to be here along with 1000s of police and other law enforcement officials. They're here in Washington a bit deep concerns of more domestic terror like last week's deadly Capitol siege, which officials say has emboldened extremists.
Also breaking right now "The Washington Post" reporting that dozens of people on the FBI terrorist watch list were here right in Washington, D.C. last week for the pro Trump events. The majority of them suspected white supremacist.
All of them -- all of this unfolding as President Trump remains isolated inside the White House, as his presidency implodes under the weight of an unprecedented second impeachment.
A source now tells CNN that Senate Republicans are deeply torn over whether to convict Mr. Trump adding, and I'm quoting now, "There's no love loss."
Let's begin the breaking news coverage into the investigation into the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Our Senior National Security Correspondent Alex Marquardt is working this story for us.
Alex, there are some major new developments unfolding tonight.
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: There really are, Wolf. It has been eight days since this extraordinary historic insurrection at the Capitol. And remarkably in that time, so for more than a week we had not heard from the head of the FBI, the Director Chris Wray that change just moments ago, I'm going to read you part of what he said.
He's talking about what we can expect in the coming days here in D.C., across the country around the inauguration of Joe Biden. He said there is "Concerning online chatter regarding events surrounding the inauguration. Right now, we are tracking calls for potential armed protests, but trying to determine what's real." That is from the FBI Director Chris Wray.
As he says this, Wolf, the arrest and the charges for those who took part in the obstruction the Capitol, are growing by the day.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
MARQUARDT (voice-over): Everyday bringing new arrests of the Capitol insurrectionist, today Kevin Seefried seen last Wednesday, roaming the halls with a large confederate flag was taken into custody in Delaware along with his son Hunter Seefried. They've been charged with three federal counts including violent entry and disorderly conduct.
The nationwide manhunt also leading to the arrest of retired Pennsylvania firefighter Robert Sanford allegedly seen in this video throwing a fire extinguisher that struck a Capitol Police officer in the head. Also facing charges.
The man wearing a Camp Auschwitz sweatshirt, Robert Packer, who was tracked down and arrested Wednesday in Virginia. The FBI says it has gotten more than 100,000 digital tips from the public.
As the investigation expands, there are more clues of planning and coordination of the insurrection rather than just being the result of a gathering that grew into an angry mob.
In this new video, you can hear writers talking about the layout of where they are in the Capitol.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: -- if you're going to take this building.
REP. JASON CROW (D-CO): It was planned in the wide open. Looking back in the weeks and months leading up to January 6, people were very clearly online and open platform saying that they were going to assault the Capitol and conducted an insurrection.
MARQUARDT: Congressman Jason Crow and his Democratic colleague Mikie Sherrill have accused other members of Congress of allegedly giving tours to rioters the day before the attack. Sherrill calling them reconnaissance missions.
REP. MIKIE SHERRILL (D-NJ): I'm glad to see that they're held accountable and if necessary, ensure that they don't serve in Congress.
MARQUARDT: Fears over renewed attacks in Washington, D.C. have turned the Capitol building into a fortress surrounded by eight-foot fencing and defended by 1000s of armed National Guard troops. Some of the 20,000 expected to be mobilized for the inauguration.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not asking people to come to D.C. for this. There's a major security threat and we are working to mitigate those threats.
MARQUARDT: The FBI fears that domestic extremists may have been emboldened by the January 6 insurrection to carry out more attacks before and during Joe Biden's inauguration. It comes as the FBI has warned a potential armed protests in all 50 states plus D.C. And an official tell CNN that the online chatter, is "off the charts."
In Michigan for a plot to kidnap the governor was disrupted last year, this militia leader says his group will be at the state capitol this weekend and armed.
[17:05:07]
MICHAEL LACKOMAR, SOUTHEAST MICHIGAN VOLUNTEER MILITIA: I would easily expect 1000s. It's going to be good turnout, especially if this impeachment push continues the way it seems to be going.
MARQUARDT: The Michigan Attorney General telling CNN, she's worried about so many people with guns.
DANA NESSEL, MICHIGAN ATTORNEY GENERAL: Honestly, I'm apoplectic about the situation because I am so gravely concerned.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
MARQUARDT: And Wolf, we are continuing to hear from the FBI director Chris Wray. He said again just moments ago that the FBI has identified more than 200 suspects in the wake of the insurrection to Capitol.
Wolf, as you know, fears are growing here about potential violence here in the nation's capital. More fencing continues to go up including near the mall where of course the inauguration takes place.
I'm told by an official who's familiar with the discussions that the general public will not be allowed into those traditional observation areas, the grassy areas on the mall where 1000s would normally gather to watch the inauguration. We are still expecting, though, to get the final restrictions from the U.S. Secret Service and the National Park Service about the closures for the inauguration, Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes. As several people have said to me, it's very sad to even hear. It's beginning to look like the green zone around Baghdad, if you will, something you and I have seen over the years. It's pretty sad that it's going on here in Washington D.C. with these 1000s of armed U.S. military personnel on the ground.
Thank you, Alex, very much.
The day after President Trump's historic second impeachment, Senate Republicans are grappling with what comes next. Let's go to our Congressional Correspondent Phil Mattingly. Phil, so, will enough Republicans vote to actually convict and remove the President. He'll actually have been removed, but to convict him and prevent him from ever being able to run for federal office again?
PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, when you talk to Republican advisors and Republican senators least over the course of the last 24 hours, there is agreement on one issue and that is that President Trump bears some culpability, some responsibility for the insurrection that the attack that occurred on the Capitol on January 6.
Now, whether that means they're going to vote to convict the President, that is an entirely different story. What we've seen over the course of the last several days is Senate Republicans trying to figure out where they want to land on this issue. A couple of Senate Republicans have already come out and said they oppose impeachment, some on the grounds that it would be too divisive in their eyes, much of what we heard from House Republicans, but also the idea that Trump would be out of office and having an impeachment wouldn't be necessary.
However, there are a number of Republicans who are doing one of two things, either not saying anything at all, or making clear people like Senator Lisa Murkowski that they believe the President did, in fact, conduct and compete an impeachable offense.
One thing to keep in mind that hovers above all of this, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Now he has told his colleagues that he's not made up his mind. But he has also made clear that he is not an automatic no. Flashback to the last impeachment trial for President Trump and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell was one of his most ardent defenders, this time around, not the case. He wants to hear the evidence. He wants to hear what the House managers have to say, and he's keeping open the possibility that he may vote to convict the President.
If McConnell goes, it's expected that several senators will join him. Will that be 17? That remains an open question. That is a large chunk of Republican conference, many of whom have reelections in 2022, have presidential ambitions in 2024. All of that is being factored in at the moment.
One thing to keep in mind, though, we were told that polling that Republicans have seen in the wake of the insurrection have shown that President Trump's numbers have actually dropped off a cliff to some degree in the Republican Party. That has been the biggest thing Trump had going for him with the party over the course of the last four years, where the base stance. His support has been rock solid. If that starts to shift, you may see Republican senators do the same, Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes. Phil Mattingly up on Capitol Hill, thank you.
We're also learning new details about the defense strategy following the President's unprecedented second impeachment. Let's go to our Chief White House Correspondent Jim Acosta.
Jim, you're getting new information from your sources. What are you learning?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf. One day after he became the first U.S. president to be impeached twice, Donald Trump now faces a trial in the Senate. But a source familiar with internal deliberations says the President's legal team is expected to challenge whether Trump can be tried and convicted in the Senate after he leaves office. The President's advisors are hopeful that Trump can keep his mouth shut for the next six days so he doesn't incite any more violence.
On the video he released last night, though, a source close to Trump said, "It should have been done a week ago."
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): Now facing a second impeachment trial, this time for his incitement of violence at the Capitol, the President's attorneys are planning to warn that any effort to punish Trump for his speech on January 6, would violate his first amendment rights.
A source familiar with Trump's impeachment defense and the soon to be ex-president's legal team is expected to argue the remarks fall into the category of protected speech. Trump's attorneys may also question the legality of a Senate impeachment trial that takes place after he leaves office. Tough case to make after the President's rally sparked an insurrection.
[17:10:08]
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We fight like hell. And if you don't fight like hell, you're not going to have a country anymore.
ACOSTA: Aides to the President urged Trump to release a video condemning violence telling him he would be responsible for further bloodshed.
TRUMP: Mob violence goes against everything I believe in and everything our movement stands for. No true supporter of mine could ever endorse political violence.
ACOSTA: But a source close to the White House told CNN that video, "should have been done a week ago."
Trump's former Acting Homeland Security Secretary says the President bears some responsibility for what happened.
CHAD WOLF, FORMER ACTING HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: I think as we look back at the events of last week, I think, certainly the President's words matter. And I think I've said that publicly on several occasions now.
ACOSTA: Trump defenders like Senator Lindsey Graham complaint, it's the bipartisan push for a second impeachment that will cause more violence, not the president. SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): These actions if they continue will incite more violence. Every time you ask President Trump to calm his people down, to reject violence, to move on, he has done it.
ACOSTA: While White House Trade Adviser Peter Navarro is still clinging to Trump's election lies.
PETER NAVARRO, WHITE HOUSE ECONOMIC ADVISER: What happened yesterday was -- what was a travesty. That was -- the Democratic Party did violence to this country by attacking a president who I believe was legally elected on November 3.
ACOSTA: What's left at the Trump inner circle is in disarray. As CNN has confirmed the President has talked about stiffing his personal attorney Rudy Giuliani on his legal fees. That's after Giuliani stoke unrest too.
RUDY GIULIANI, PRESIDENT TRUMP'S PERSONAL ATTORNEY: So, let's have trial by combat.
ACOSTA: Some Trump advisors have had enough with one ally telling CNN, "He will be the cautionary tale parents tell their kids. Don't end up like Trump because of your lies."
But there are growing demands for accountability for GOP members of Congress who also called for violence.
REP. MO BROOKS (R-AL): Today is the day American patriots start taking down names and kicking ass.
REP. MADISON CAWTHORN (R-NC): Call your congressman and feel free, you can lightly threaten them and say, you know what, if you don't start supporting election integrity, I'm coming after you.
ACOSTA: One former administration cybersecurity official says there should be consequences.
CHRIS KREBS, FORMER CISA DIRECTOR: You don't get a mulligan on insurrection. You don't get a one-time pass. We have to be forceful and clearly communicate to the world that this is unacceptable and there will be consequences.
ACOSTA: In these final days signs Trump officials are heading for the exits from the moving trucks to staffers removing items from the West Wing to the Biden inauguration bunting in full view of the White House.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
ACOSTA: And on this conversation about law enforcement officials and members of the U.S. military behaving appropriately during the Biden inauguration events. Wolf, we should note that CNN has obtained a memo from the director of the Secret Service James Murray to the agency's 1000s of employees. We can show you a portion of that statement on screen. The director of the Secret Service is saying "When carrying out our duties and representing the agency, we are expected to behave in a nonpartisan manner."
Wolf, this memo went on to tell agency officials over there that they understand that yes, there's a lot of hyper partisan content in social media these days, but that the agency's employees like other members of the U.S. military, other members of the law enforcement community, they're expected to push that to the side, push their personal feelings to the side and behave appropriately and professionally during this upcoming inauguration, Wolf.
BLITZER: Yes. All right, Jim Acosta, thank you very much. Jim's over at the White House.
So let's get some more now on all the breaking news. Our Chief Political Analyst Gloria Borger is with us. Our Chief National Correspondent, the Anchor of "Inside Politics," John King, is with us as well.
John, I want you and all of our viewers to listen to what the FBI director Chris Wray just said. Listen to this warning.
CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: We are seeing an extensive amount of concerning online chatter, I guess the best way I would describe it, about a number of events surrounding the inauguration. And together with our partners, we evaluate those threats and what kind of resources to deploy against them. Right now we're tracking calls for potential armed protests.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: Potential armed protests here in Washington. We're seeing enormous security increases just ahead of next week's inauguration six days from now. So what -- how do you interpret what the Christopher Wray, the FBI director is saying?
JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: They are going public and going public repeatedly, Wolf, to send a signal. To send a signal to all of their people, to send a signal to elected officials, to send a signal to anybody who might want to attend the inauguration, out of curiosity out of support for the President-elect on that day. Don't do it. Be careful.
[17:15:00]
And, Wolf, I was talking to law enforcement officials here in Washington and several in a couple of the states today, and they all said the same thing. This is very real, that it's very difficult to separate people who are just bragging and threatening things online and people are actually planning it. But what happened at the Capitol is proof that many of these people mean what they say and have the wherewithal to do what they say they're going to do.
One big concern, Wolf, as we get closer to inauguration day, is because you have Christopher Wray, because you have mayors and Washington, governors around the country, saying we are fortifying the Capitol, we're defending our state capitol building. We're closing them all here in Washington, D.C.
They say some of that chatter now is about officials, all these plotters looking for secondary targets, iconic brands, other buildings, that's why watch here in Washington and won't just be the mall close, they're going to expand that perimeter to protect other buildings, other potential targets as well.
BLITZER: Does it make any sense to you, Gloria, that this is really the first time we've heard publicly from the FBI Director since the attacks, are what, eight days ago?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: No, I would have presumed that we would have heard from him eight days ago. And we haven't. And so I'm glad we're finally hearing from him.
I -- you know, the question, of course, is whether he wants to remain out of the spotlight, because Donald Trump only has a certain number of days left in his term to fire him. And you know they -- Trump has said that he's disappointed in Mr. Wray many, many times. So that may be the reason.
But I do think that you need to raise public awareness. And that is what they are trying to do. I mean, you know, if you see something, say something, and that's what we heard after 9/11 and that is what we're hearing now. And I think that the more you talk to the American public about what might occur the better it is for the public, because the public has to be aware of this.
And, you know, we heard the President last night, and he said, you know, he wants this to remain peaceful. But what he did not say is that Joe Biden is the duly elected President of the United States period. If he says that, and tells people not to come to Washington, that would be a big help.
BLITZER: Certainly would. Now I'm holding my breath waiting for him to utter those words, but it certainly would.
You know, John, CNN has learned that the President's allies actually advised them pretty forcefully that he needed to condemn the violence or he will, "own it." But the President is still refusing to admit that the big lie that he told -- that he told everyone and certainly fired up that mob that the election was stolen from him. He was -- he was elected by a wide margin, but the Democrats stole it. None of that is true. You could -- could you -- could you envisage the President admitting it was a lie?
KING: No, he still won't admit what happened in the first election. He still believes he won the popular vote against Hillary Clinton and that 6 million people voted illegally. He will not give up his big lies and his big conspiracies, Wolf. He never has. And now in his final days, his aides, particularly his attorneys, are telling them he should be careful in what he says.
What you heard yesterday, look, the President said let's not have violins. Great. That's welcome. It's well -- it's way overdue.
And part of it was his own lawyers telling him Mr. President, you will be sued, prosecutors will look at whether you are culpable at all for the incitement of the Capitol insurrection. You do not want your name, your fingerprints on anything that happens from here looking forward. So it's welcome that the President is condemning violence.
But Gloria is right and you're right. He could say, number one, Joe Biden is president, this election is over, everybody stand down. And he could say the way to continue our grievances is in 2022 and 2024 at the ballot box, the American way, not the violent way. But the President won't speak those words.
BLITZER: We're showing our viewers live pictures of west side of the Capitol around Third Street. If you're familiar with the area you see armed U.S. military personnel, some 20,000 have been deployed. I suspect there will be more here by next Wednesday, the day of the inauguration, Gloria. And maybe 10,000 police and other law enforcement have already been deployed to the streets of Washington, D.C. It's extraordinary what's going on.
Republicans, meanwhile, Gloria, in the Senate are clearly torn over whether they should actually convict the President. Mitch McConnell has not yet said how he will vote. You have some new reporting about Joe Biden's relationship with Mitch McConnell. Tell our viewers what you're learning?
BORGER: Well, these man have known each other for a long time, as we all know. And I was told that Mitch McConnell and Joe Biden talk more than people know and this is from someone who's close to Joe Biden. And that Joe Biden sees McConnell as somebody who's kind of on the level, somebody who's not going to pull a fast one on him I was told.
And that when the staff says, look, we got to go after them on confirmations and the scheduling of confirmations, Biden says to them, calm down, give it a minute, we'll deal with it. We're going to -- he kind of is leading it that way saying, look, I know how to talk to these people. And it's -- they call it strategic patience.
This is what Biden is practicing internally. And that is what he is doing in terms of Senate Republicans and Democrats with him he is speaking right now.
[17:20:05]
BLITZER: Yes. Yes, I think they have about a 30 year, if not longer relationship --
BORGER: They do.
BLITZER: -- McConnell and Biden. Let's see if they can do something in the weeks and months ahead.
All right, guys, thank you very, very much.
There's more breaking news. We're following more on the troubling new warning from the FBI Director about threats to next week's presidential inauguration.
Plus, President-elect Biden is about to announce a nearly $2 trillion COVID relief package. We're learning new details about what it contains, what it means for you. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BLITZER: President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration just six days away in Washington D.C., this city, as well as the states around the country, all 50 of them are preparing for possible violence. Twenty thousand U.S. National Guard troops are expected here in Washington, maybe another 10,000 police and other law enforcement. Some of them are from Wisconsin, which are already is deploying National Guard troops around its state capitol.
Joining us now the Attorney General of Wisconsin, Josh Kaul.
Attorney General, thank you so much for joining us. I don't know if you were listening but only moments ago the FBI Director Christopher Wray said they're tracking what he described as an extensive amount of very concerning online chatter on events around the inauguration.
[17:25:09]
We know extremists, largely white nationalists, white supremacists are also targeting state capitals. What are you bracing for specifically where you are?
JOSH KAUL, WISCONSIN ATTORNEY GENERAL: Well first I'm glad that Director Wray has finally had an opportunity to speak to the public about what's going on. I think it's really critical that our federal and local and state law enforcement are all clear about the situation that we're facing, and that you're going to be working together to make sure that any improper activity is investigated and prosecuted.
This is an evolving situation. And we are working with partners to identify any dangers to safety in our state capitol or elsewhere in Wisconsin. We're taking precautionary measures, as you said, the National Guard has been deployed and windows have been boarded up for state capitol.
But anybody who might try to engage in the kind of conduct we saw in D.C. last week should know that federal and state resources, if that kind of conduct happens, will be used to investigate them and to make sure that they're prosecuted to the full extent of the law.
BLITZER: Attorney General, how is the coordination going at the federal level? Have you been fully briefed by Trump administration officials on the potential threats, including arm violence that are out there?
KAUL: We've had good coordination. And we had a period leading up to the election and since the election. The federal agents who work for the federal government day in and day out are doing great important work. The problem we've had is at the top, we need the President to be clear about the truth of what's happened, which is that he lost the election by about 7 million votes. And we had a free and fair election and that we need to have a peaceful transfer of power.
And we need our leading federal enforcement officials to speak up about those points as well.
BLITZER: What worries you most? Have you seen any specific threats to the people of Wisconsin, especially in the state capitol on Madison?
KAUL: What worries me most is just what we saw last week, and that there's going to be an effort to have some sort of copycat approaches going forward. There have been concerns raised about potential armed protests at all 50 state capitols. But, as I said, this is an evolving situation, there appears to be a lot of online chatter going on.
So we're going to continue monitoring that. And if there are specific credible threats, appropriate law enforcement action will be taken.
BLITZER: Attorney General Josh Kaul of Wisconsin, good luck to you. Good luck to all the folks in Wisconsin. Thanks so much for joining us.
Coming up. We're going to have a bunch more than all the breaking news we're following. The truly extraordinary security measures that have been imposed right here in the nation's capital just ahead of Joe Biden's inauguration.
And in the second impeachment of President Trump, can President-elect Biden get his agenda through Congress? We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:32:29]
BLITZER: Our breaking news, the FBI Director Chris Wray just a little while ago warning about very concerning online chatter regarding the events surrounding President-elect Biden's inauguration next Wednesday. Washington, D.C., as you can see from these pictures, Washington, D.C. turning into an armed fortress right now. Almost everywhere you look, there are new barriers, high fencing, U.S. military personnel armed and a lot of police especially near the U.S. Capitol along the Washington mall, the national -- all the major national monuments, White House.
I want to bring in our Crime and Justice Correspondent Shimon Prokupecz, who's on the scene for us watching all of this unfold. It looks awful, but totally understandable, given what happened eight days ago here in Washington, Shimon.
SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, exactly, Wolf. And given what the FBI Director there said, and the concerns about possible other attacks here in Washington, D.C. and around the country, you can understand why there is such a security force around Washington, D.C. and it's really incredible to see. We've been out here all day, Wolf, now and the arm -- the National Guard, the troops, all stationed around here to circling the Capitol, they are heavily armed, as you can see, and they line up.
This is the west side of the Capitol, behind me is the stage where the -- where Biden will take the oath. That is the stage and this entire area is surrounded by the National Guard, Wolf. And then there's all of this extra layers of security here, Wolf, I want to show you. People have been coming out here all day actually, Wolf, taking photos for themselves wanting to see what's going on.
But the officials here are putting up extra fencing, you could see behind me. So they're going to have extra layers and layers of security. At some point, this entire area is going to be shut down. But for this entire stretch, this entire area, they're building out these new fences.
And then, Wolf, I just want to show you one other thing that what's going on behind me here. This is where some of the performances on the day of the inauguration are going to take place. You can see that for them here, business is normal. They are building out this stage for the performances, while the military essentially surrounds this entire area to protect the nation's Capitol from another attack.
BLITZER: Yes, it's a really serious, serious situation indeed. Very worrisome. We'll see what happens.
[17:35:02]
As of now -- as of right now, President Biden will be sworn in outside, the Vice President Kamala Harris will be sworn in outside. If the security situation we're in, God forbid, I hope it doesn't get worse, they would have to move it indoors. We'll see what happens next Wednesday.
Shimon, stay safe over there. We're going to be hearing by the way from President-elect Biden soon as he lays out what's being described as a nearly 2 trillion, trillion-dollar pandemic relief plan.
Let's go to our Political Correspondent, MJ Lee. She's covering the President-elect for us. MJ, so what do we anticipate hearing from him in a little while?
MJ LEE, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, this is expected to be a major speech from the President-elect laying out how he plans on dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. And it's really going on two tracks, right. The first one is the economic stimulus piece of it. And now we can confirm that the total price tag is going to be $1.9 trillion.
Some of the things that are expected to be in this package include $1,400 in direct payments to families, extension of unemployment benefits, significant funding that will be set aside to set up these national vaccination sites, grants and funding given to small businesses and others who have suffered during this pandemic. And then the second piece of this, Wolf, is really just the plan for how to actually get these vaccinations up and running, right. So setting up the mass vaccination sites that we have been talking about, ramping up testing in a major way, focusing on communities that have really been hit the hardest, and really getting a handle on these coronavirus variants that have been popping up across the country and around the world.
Remember, the goal that Biden has stated is 100 million COVID vaccines administered in his first 100 days in office. We asked Biden senior administration officials today, whether they are still confident that that is a goal that they can meet. They said that they are, however, they did also note that the cooperation that they have gotten from the Trump administration has been uneven. They also stress for good measure that what Biden is about to inherit is worse than anything they could have ever imagined. Wolf.
BLITZER: I want to show, MJ, some live pictures were coming in right now, the Vice President Mike Pence, he's meeting with National Guard personnel outside the Capitol right now speaking to them. Let's listen in if we can hear what he's saying.
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Just God bless you in the days ahead. And then my great honor to serve as your Vice President. And I want to thank you for your service, OK? Great.
PALESTINE MARTIN, SPECIALIST, NATIONAL GUARD: Thank you, sir.
PENCE: So tell me your name.
MARTIN: My name is specialist Palestine Martin (ph), sir.
PENCE: Where are you from?
MARTIN: I'm from Virginia, sir.
PENCE: Is that right?
MARTIN: Yes, sir.
PENCE: Great. Virginia. And how long you've been in the National Guard?
MARTIN: I've been in the National Guard for six years, sir.
PENCE: That's awesome. Great job.
MARTIN: Thank you, sir.
PENCE: How about you?
JOSEPH WYOMING, NATIONAL GUARD: Staff Sergeant Joseph Wyoming (ph), Virginia, 34 years.
PENCE: 34 years in the National Guard?
WYOMING: Yes, sir.
PENCE: I think that deserves a round of applause. Anybody else?
WYOMING: Thank you, sir.
PENCE: Thank you. That's awesome. You're going to look after all these folks?
WYOMING: Yes, sir.
PENCE: Good. Yes. You could track them.
WYOMING: Thank you, sir.
PENCE: Good. That's great. Great. How about you, where you from?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: All right, so there you see the Vice President of the United States thanking these U.S. military personnel, members of the U.S. National Guard. They've been deployed here to Washington, D.C. to help with the security situation. 20,000 National Guard troops will be here, maybe even more, we are told, in addition to about 10,000 police and other law enforcement authorities. It's a major, major military and police presence gearing up for the inauguration and six days of the President-elect Joe Biden, the Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
All right. Let's take a quick break. We have a lot more in the breaking news right after this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PENCE: So how long you been in?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: About two and a half years, sir.
PENCE: Yes, that's great. That's great.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:42:27]
BLITZER: We're following multiple breaking stories here in The Situation Room including a source now telling CNN that Senate Republicans are torn about possibly convicting President Trump in his upcoming impeachment trial. This comes as the Senate prepares to switch to Democratic majority control and deal with the deluge of confirmation hearings, new legislation as the Biden administration gets up and running, lots going on.
Let's discuss with Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. He's a key member of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Senator, thank you so much for joining us. We just witnessed this historic vote in the House of Representatives impeaching President Trump for the second time. How soon do you want to see the Senate actually launch the impeachment trial?
SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): Wolf, thanks for having me. Discussions are ongoing as we speak right now about what the timing should be. But I can tell you, my hope and expectation is that it will be very soon within a matter of days after the inaugural. And the reason is we have a constitutional responsibility to demand accountability to have a trial, but at the same time, to carry out the vision and agenda that President-elect Biden will outline tonight.
Very exciting vision, we need to turn it into legislation to conquer the pandemic and to revive the economy and to confirm his nominees. But we can do both with Republican cooperation. And the Republicans right now are facing a choice. They're giving us a false choice of one or the other. But we can do both at the same time.
BLITZER: The President-elect is about, as you correctly pointed out, to unveil a new COVID relief package. He wants his Cabinet nominees confirmed as quickly as possible. Regardless of how the Senate proceeds with the impeachment trial, is there any doubt at all that this will delay the trial? I'm talking about delay Biden's priorities.
BLUMENTHAL: If there's a delay, and there really need not be one if the Republicans will cooperate and permit us to go forward on these two separate tracks at the same time, it will be only a slight delay. This trial should proceed very expeditiously. The record is clear, the evidence consists of Donald Trump's own statements recorded by video and his guilty antenna is proved by his tweets before and his statements have toward indicating no contrition, no regret, no apology.
[17:45:06]
And what he did, in fact, trying to recruit other members of the Senate Republicans to delay the counting of votes. His purpose in inciting this mob attack, an act of domestic terror was very simply to overthrow a legitimate election result, a coup attempt, in effect, using this crowd of really armed and dangerous mob. And that I think is the evidence out of his own mouth.
BLITZER: One Republican source has told us there's no love loss among Senate Republicans right now for President Trump. But it's a real question about whether they actually go ahead and vote to convict him once he's already out of office, and he will be out of office in six days. How many Republicans do you expect that we'll actually vote yea in favor of conviction this time?
BLUMENTHAL: I've talked to a number of Republican colleagues who absolutely repulsed by what he did. And we went through this experience. It's personal with us and with my Republican colleagues. Some of them voted to acquit in the last impeachment trial because they thought he had, in quotes, learned his lesson. Obviously, he didn't.
So I am very hopeful that we'll have enough votes. But one way or the other, they will have to answer to history because they have voted to acquit once. If they do it twice, they will be judged harshly, and not only by history but I think by American voters. The principle of accountability is so profoundly important here, even if he's out of office. And there's clear precedent for convicting a public official, even if he or she is out of office.
BLITZER: Yes, there's been impeachments and convictions of federal officials in the past, but not a President who's actually left. This would be the first time for a President or -- and in this particular case, it would be a former president, who would be removed, already removed but convicted and potentially barred from ever holding any federal office again.
Senator Blumenthal, thanks so much for joining us.
BLUMENTHAL: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Coming up, a third coronavirus vaccine on the horizon right now as the CDC is issuing a grim new death toll projection. Plus, there's breaking news, the FBI identifies hundreds more suspects in the U.S. Capitol siege. We have new details, new details, including of new arrests when we come back.
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[17:52:04]
BLITZER: There's breaking pandemic news as well. The U.S. death toll is now top 387,000 people with more than 23.2 million confirmed cases here in the United States. Our National Correspondent Erica Hill has the latest.
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ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The surge is getting worse.
DR. JONATHAN REINER, PROFESSOR O MEDICINE, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: So we see hospitalizations drop. And until we start to see a sustained drop in daily cases, we're going to see this terrible toll.
HILL (voice-over): That terrible toll growing by the thousands on a daily basis. More than 3,800 deaths reported just yesterday.
JOE GERALD, ASSOC PROF. PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY & MANAGEMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA: Four to six weeks from now, we could be seeing twice as many deaths or maybe as much as four times as many deaths a day.
HILL (voice-over): Hospitalizations hovering around 130,000. Daily new cases now averaging more than 245,000, that's up 10 percent in the last week. In Los Angeles County, one in three residents has been infected since the pandemic began. And now, officials warn outbreaks are growing.
One metric moving in the right direction, testing up nearly 20 percent in the last week, though, as sites like Dodger Stadium shift to vaccinations, there's concerned testing may take a hit. More Americans are now eligible for the vaccine, 6.6 million in California alone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I decided to get here early. HILL (voice-over): But finding that first dose isn't easy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They also know.
HILL (voice-over): Especially as the pool grows.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Pharmacies we called hospitals, we called health departments, doctors offices, they all just said that they don't have it.
HILL (voice-over): Major League stadiums across the country stepping up to the plate as mass vaccination sites. New York opening its first drive thru facility Thursday morning.
MICHAEL KOPY, DIR. NEW YORK STATE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT: We're only held back at this point by the number of vaccines.
HILL (voice-over): Distribution still a major hurdle.
MAYOR LORI LIGHTFOOT (D-IL), CHICAGO: At the rate we've been on, Chicago won't be fully vaccinated for another year and a half and that is completely and totally unacceptable.
HILL (voice-over): Mississippi has already exhausted its supply as issues mount more states questioning President-elect Biden's pledge to get 100 million shots at arms in his first 100 days.
DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, EXEC. ASSOC. DEAN, EMORY UNIV. SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: We're going to need resources.
HILL (voice-over): A third vaccine is on the horizon. Johnson and Johnson could apply for Emergency Use Authorization by the end of the month.
REINER: This vaccine would really I think, open up any bottlenecks that we have in vaccine distribution.
HILL (voice-over): It's not only easier to store early data from J&J's initial trials, also shows immunity with a single shot.
DEL RIO: Having a single dose vaccine will be a game changer.
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HILL: A quick update on those numbers, the CDC reporting 30.6 million doses have now been distributed just over 11 million of those administered. One other number though, Wolf, I really want to highlight tonight is unemployment.
[17:55:02]
We saw massive filings in the last week on a seasonally adjusted basis. 965,000 people filing for first time unemployment benefits, that is not only worse than expected, it is much more than what we saw the week before that, which is about 784,000, Wolf. BLITZER: Yes. Almost think about it, Erica, almost a million Americans lost their jobs and had to file for first time unemployment benefits just last week, that according to the U.S. Labor Department, almost every week. 700,000, 800,000, the pandemic is still having an enormous economic impact.
Erica Hill reporting from New York, thank you very much.
There's more breaking news, a troubling new warning from the FBI Director about threats for next week's presidential inauguration. We have details. We'll be right back.
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