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The Situation Room

Biden Acts to Ease "Deepening" Economic Crisis, Signs Orders on Stimulus Checks, Food Stamps, Minimum Wage; Pelosi to Send Trump Article of Impeachment to Senate on Monday; CDC: Second Doses of Vaccine may be Scheduled "Up to 6 Weeks" Later; British P.M. Johnson: U.K. Coronavirus Variants May Be Linked To "Higher Degree of Mortality"; Biden Directs FEMA To Work With States On Vaccine Distribution; Biden's Defense Secretary On The Job After Senate Confirmation; Lloyd Austin Is The First African American Pentagon Chief; National Guard Allowed Back Into Capitol Complex After Several Lawmakers Erupt At Banishment To Parking Garage. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired January 22, 2021 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:10]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. We're following breaking news.

President Biden on his second full day in office, unveiling his pandemic economic relief plan at the White House just a little while ago. He signed two more executive orders aimed at easing the suffering of millions of Americans saying -- and I'm quoting him now, "We will not let people go hungry." And "We can't let people lose their jobs."

He also said the actions don't replace the $1.9 trillion relief package he's seeking from Congress. And he says the country must, and I'm quoting right now, "Act like we're in a national emergency."

And we're also following other breaking pandemic news tonight. The U.S. coronavirus death toll here in the United States tops 412,000 people with almost 25 million -- million confirmed cases. That comes as the CDC has just reported the biggest one-day increase in vaccinations.

Let's get straight to the White House to start our coverage this hour, our chief White House correspondent, Kaitlan Collins, is joining us right now.

Kaitlan, the president says there's a moral obligation and an economic imperative to end the suffering brought on by this pandemic.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf. He compared what we're living into a national emergency, saying the crisis is only getting worse every day. And he is trying to address that. At least the economic part of it today with more of those executive orders that have really dictated his first few days in office. But Wolf, what's looming in the background is his predecessor, and that impeachment trial and how it's going to affect the agenda that he is trying to put in place. And White House aides have said Joe Biden did not have an opinion on when Donald Trump's impeachment trial was going to happen. But then today he told us that he did.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS (voice-over): President Biden signing another round of executive orders today, as he attempts to use the power of his office to blunt the economic fallout from the pandemic.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have to act. We have to act now.

COLLINS: By expanding food stamps and speeding up stimulus checks for eligible Americans who haven't received them yet. Biden is hoping to deliver desperately needed relief.

BIDEN: We cannot, will not let people go hungry. We cannot let people be evicted because of nothing they did themselves. They cannot watch people lose their jobs.

COLLINS: Today, Biden's top economic aide, Brian Deese, spoke bluntly about the challenge that is facing them.

BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL: Our economy is at a very precarious moment. If we don't act now, we will be in a much worse place and we will find ourselves needing to do much more to dig out of a much deeper hole.

COLLINS: Deese adding that Biden's executive orders should not be seen as a replacement for the $1.9 trillion relief package he's called on Congress to pass.

DEESE: The single most important thing economically right now is to take decisive action.

COLLINS: This impeachment announcement from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has some White House officials worried that Biden's early agenda could be left in limbo.

SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY): I have spoken to Speaker Pelosi, who informed me that the articles will be delivered to the Senate on Monday.

COLLINS: That means President Trump's trial could start as soon as next week. But, today, Biden seemed to side with Mitch McConnell's proposal they wait until next month.

QUESTION: Mr. President, do you support Mitch McConnell's timeline for a February impeachment trial?

BIDEN: The more time we have to get up and running and to meet these crises, the better. COLLINS: Privately, White House officials have voiced concern about whether an impeachment trial would affect passing a relief package or confirming Biden's Cabinet nominees, given only two have been confirmed so far.

Today, the White House press secretary declined to say if President Biden ultimately believes his predecessor should be barred from holding office.

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, he's no longer in the Senate, and he believes that it's up to the Senate and Congress to determine how they will hold the former president accountable.

COLLINS: One Biden official was more candid, telling CNN: "We need to move past this. The only way for that to happen is for the trial to begin."

Coronavirus remains the top challenge facing the Biden administration. And, tonight, there are new questions about this campaign trail promise.

BIDEN: At least 100 million COVID vaccines shots into the arms of the American people in the first 100 days, 100 million shots in the first 100 days.

COLLINS: Data from the CDC says the U.S. has already reached that goal of vaccinating one million people per day, leading some experts to say Biden's plan is too modest.

BIDEN: God willing, not only do 100 million, we're going to do more than that.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COLLINS (on camera): Now, Wolf, up next for President Biden are going to be his first foreign calls since taking office. Mexico and Canada are the first ones he's going to be making.

[17:05:00]

And when he's speaking with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, we should remind viewers, that's a relationship that was left pretty fractured by President Trump at times. Remember, he was calling Trudeau dishonest and weak.

It may already have some tension to this call that should be happening now or any moment because of course Trudeau is already criticizing Biden's decision to cancel the Keystone Pipeline. Of course, that ran from Alberta to Nebraska. It could affect the Canadian oil industry, but the White House says we will get a readout of how that call goes this evening, Wolf.

BLITZER: Once you get it, let us know. Don't go too far away, Kaitlan. I want you to come back.

Let me go to Capitol Hill first right now. There are some major new developments in the impeachment of former President Trump.

Let's go to our chief congressional correspondent, Manu Raju. I understand Manu, you're learning that the chances of Trump being convicted in the Senate during the impeachment trial, the chances apparently eroding right now. What are you hearing?

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Growing very slim. I'm talking to a number of Republican senators, more than a dozen are making it clear a consensus forming within the Senate Republican conference that there's simply will not be enough support to convict Donald Trump during this upcoming impeachment trial. While it would be needed to convict him would be 67 senators from both parties to take that unprecedented action of convicting the former president. And then later, a vote on a simple majority to bar him from ever serving in office again.

But talking to Republican senators tonight, it's very clear that outside of the handful of Republican senators, it is highly doubtful that they can get up to 17 who would break ranks. Republicans are growing more vocal in criticizing the process. They're not necessarily defending Donald Trump's actions, inciting that rally that led to the deadly mob violence that we saw on Capitol Hill on January 6th, but they are arguing in their view it's not constitutional to go after a former president and they're saying that it's time to simply move on.

Now, Democrats are planning to make the argument during the impeachment trial that it is, in fact, constitutional. The Senate, they're going to point to past precedent where they've gone after former federal officers after they have left office. But it's unlikely that's going to pass muster with most Republican senators.

And potentially even the one big wild card, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has privately believed that Donald Trump committed impeachable offenses. But I'm told from Republican senators the view is that he will probably end up where most of his Republican conference is. He has said to his colleagues he has not made a decision yet. But nonetheless, the growing expectation Donald Trump will be acquitted but we'll see if anything changes over the next several days.

BLITZER: We'll see if he's acquitted a second time. Impeached twice, and maybe acquitted twice as well. I'm sure he will brag about that, if he is acquitted a second time.

Democrats and Republicans, Manu, they still need to agree on when the trial will actually begin in the Senate. Walk us through what happens after the Senate on Monday formally receives this one article of impeachment.

RAJU: That's the one thing we know for sure is going to happen on Monday. Pelosi - Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House, will send over that article of impeachment with her House impeachment managers. The people who will actually make the argument on the floor of the Senate to prosecute Donald Trump.

But after that, it is uncertain. Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer, the two leaders at the Senate are in negotiations right now about the schedule. It could start as soon as Tuesday afternoon. Arguments could happen next week. But it's also possible it could be delayed because all of this is tied up in other stalled matters, including officially organizing the Senate. So, Senate committees can operate.

And also, moving forward on Joe Biden's nominees, who need to be confirmed by the United States Senate. There's a negotiation about all of those things. And this comes as Republicans are flatly warning that if they move ahead with the impeachment trial next week that Joe Biden's nominees could be stalled.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): If you want to impeach the president, we're going to do it like we've always done it. We're not going to split the day. At least I wouldn't. That's the business of the Senate, once we go into it. They're choosing to do this. They're choosing to do this. We're going to do it the way we've always done it. We've never split the day.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: And Wolf, Lindsey Graham's threat here is real. Because one senator out of 100 senators can simply object and prevent the Senate from scheduling a vote on a nominee. So, the impeachment trial would occur in the afternoon every day, but they would need consent of all 100 senators to set a vote in the morning to confirm Joe Biden's nominees.

And if Lindsey Graham or other Republican senators who I'm talking to, including Senator John Cornyn of Texas, all contended that it is not going to happen that these nominees will get confirmed at the same time. That is a concern for the Biden administration, to get his cabinet confirmed very quickly.

And the reason why some Democrats may be willing to delay the start of the trial, to at least get some of these nominees through, given the posture of some Senators here. Wolf?

BLITZER: We just heard President Biden saying a few minutes ago, he needs some time to, quote, "Get our administration up and running." Sounds like he wants to see a little bit of a delay, too. We'll discuss that. Manu, thank you very, very much.

[17:10:06]

Lots going on. Let's bring in our CNN political director David Chalian, CNN chief political analyst Gloria Borger and Kaitlan Collins is back with us as well.

So, Gloria, first of all, let's get back to the substance. Give us your reaction to what we heard from President Biden as he rolled out this new series of executive actions addressing the enormously serious economic fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, you know, the first weeks of any administration are about setting markers and about letting the American public know what your values are and what you find to be hugely important. Obviously, the president has already spoken about the economic crisis, but today he said, look, we have to make sure that people who are suffering get the assistance that they need.

And so, he wants to make sure that these checks go to people at the lower end of the income scale. One of the things he signed today said all federal contractors need to pay the minimum wage.

And so, it's very clear what his priorities are. And I think that this is one way to do it. You put these markers down and you say this is what I'm about as president and I don't want these people to fall through the cracks.

BLITZER: You know, David, signing executive orders is one thing. Very, very important. Don't want to belittle that. But what the White House also really needs, even more importantly, is do legislations, specifically the $1.9 trillion COVID relief package. That's going to go through the House and the Senate. But the Senate can't even settle on a power sharing agreement at this point. It gets a little complicated. How are they going to pass big important bills like this?

DAVID CHALIAN, CNN POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Well, you pass big, important bills through a lot of negotiation and deal making which is certainly going to happen here.

Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, has referred to day-after- day the sausage-making process. And that nobody sort of knows what the sausage will look like when it comes out of the machine at the end.

This is the initial proposal from the president. He understands that's not exactly what it's going to look like. He probably understands better than anyone, given his history of 36 years serving in the United States Senate.

The other piece of how, in a closely divided Senate, one that is dysfunctional right now that you have to factor in here, Wolf, of how a big bill like that gets done is the crisis that we're in. And the American people may simply demand it of their senators and representatives, that they are in need of this help. And that pressure from voters always has some kind of impact on the bill-making process as well.

BLITZER: You think, David, the era of bipartisanship has passed?

CHALIAN: I think that this political moment that we're in and have been in for maybe two decades now makes it really hard to just have folks from both sides come together. You know, Wolf. Members of Congress in today's day and age are far more concerned about their electoral prospects in a primary because of the way the districts are drawn and what have you, than they are about the general election.

So, I think the notion that there's this big coming together of both parties to get something big done is slim. Now, as President Biden said in his inaugural address, he just needs enough of us. That was his quote. He doesn't need all the Republicans to come on board. He needs enough of them to come on board and he's not willing to rule that out at the outset. He wants to give it a try.

BLITZER: We'll see how that works.

You know, Kaitlan, does the White House right now - the new Biden White House see the current disfunction in Senate as potentially a sign of things to come?

COLLINS: I think so, Wolf, because of course, there's only so much you can do with executive order. You know you can't govern by that completely throughout your entire tenure. And you know take for example what's happened today.

He signs that executive order that would speed up those stimulus checks for eligible Americans who haven't gotten them yet whether because they haven't filed taxes. They're not registered through that. But that's not actually sending out new checks to Americans. And that's what's included in his legislative proposal that he has called on Congress to pass. Of course, it's probably going to look a lot different by the time it actually does, if it does pass.

And so, I think that that's a realization that the White House sees. And of course, you know they're navigating this power-sharing agreement. And the White House hasn't really said - hasn't weighed in on it, I guess I would say. They've said that there are conversations happening behind the scenes between lawmakers and White House officials. But they haven't really provided any details of what exactly they're hoping that would look like.

BLITZER: You know, Gloria, as far as the impeachment process is concerned, Republican Senator Roger Wicker of Mississippi just said the chances of getting a conviction on a Senate floor, in his words, are virtually nil. Do you agree?

BORGER: Well, I think that it is going to be very difficult and I think the senator may be counting Republican heads there. I think that the Democrats understand how difficult it would be. I think part of their problem is that this is happening after Donald Trump has left office, and a lot of Republicans are saying this is unconstitutional.

[17:15:01]

So, they may want to talk more about the process than about what Donald Trump actually did in inciting a riot that attacked or tried to attack members of Congress in which five people died. I think there are lots of people privately who would probably vote for impeachment, if it were a private vote. But it's a public vote. And there's still lots of Republicans worried about Donald Trump's 74 million voters out there and they are very loath to go against him.

BLITZER: And you're absolutely right.

You know, David, how much will Mitch McConnell, the new minority leader in the Senate, how much will his vote influence the final outcome?

CHALIAN: You know, I think that if McConnell actually which I still think is hard to imagine that he actually does vote to convict, really wants to rid the Republican Party of Donald Trump, prevent him from running for office again and immediately sort of takes that out of the equation. Donald Trump wouldn't be able to sort of hold that over the heads of the Republicans currently serving.

I still think he maybe brings two or three or four people along with him. I don't think that the Republican conference is somehow just going to take this leap of faith with Mitch McConnell off the cliff, to do something as drastic as voting to convict at an impeachment trial even though Donald Trump has already left office.

So, he may have some influence with some of the Republicans in the conference. But I don't even think - I don't even think Mitch McConnell voting to do so all of a sudden opens up the flood gates, Wolf, to get to 17. At least the way things look right now.

BLITZER: Yes. Look like they could get three, four, five, maybe six. 17, that's a huge, huge number.

You know, Kaitlan, President Biden, just a little while ago, you heard him. He indicated he would be open potentially to delaying the Senate trial in order to get his cabinet nominees confirmed, in order to get some substantive legislation passed, including this COVID relief package. How much concern is there where you are, over at the White House, that the impeachment trial in the Senate is going to be a serious obstacle in the immediate days ahead?

COLLINS: I think there's a lot behind the scenes. Because they're kind of stuck in this position of they would like to get the trial over with. That's what we're hearing from Biden officials privately. But also, the question is, if you delay it, how long do you delay it? Because then it's still looming there in the background of your agenda and what they're wanting to get done on the Hill.

And so, they are kind of in this position where they were saying the president did not have an opinion on when that happen. He was leaving it up to the Senate. But then we heard today, he sounded more on agreement with which - what Mitch McConnell has proposed, which is not starting the trial until February.

And so, that was of course, because one of their main concerns in addition to the coronavirus relief bill is getting those nominees confirmed. So far, he only has two confirmed. And it's really hard to start your agenda and government when you do not have a cabinet to work with.

And you're still working with Trump officials who have been in their positions, including like at the Pentagon - or the Pentagon that just changed over today. But you kind of get that sense of who exactly it is that Biden is relying on and working with throughout these agencies.

And so, we've heard from officials who say maybe if they delay it, that would be better so then he can get a few more people confirmed, maybe you hash out some kind of agreement on this legislation, though it looks like that may take a little bit longer.

But I do think you're seeing this where Donald Trump's presence is still looming large over the early days of this administration.

BLITZER: President Biden just said, the more time we have to get up and running to meet these crises, the better. Very strong words, strong signal from him.

So, Gloria, if former President Trump is acquitted in the Senate a second time, do you think that's potentially a political headache for the Democrats? He's the only president ever to be impeached twice. But he might become the only president and in this particular case a former president who is acquitted twice.

BORGER: I think it may be more of a headache for the Republicans at this point, Wolf. Because if lots of them are like Mitch McConnell and they want to sort of get Donald Trump out of the picture and toss him to one side, Donald Trump can stand out there and say I was acquitted twice. That it was a big witch hunt, whatever you want to call it. And he can start making the case for himself as a viable figure for a presidential race in 2024 if he wants to do it. And the people who believe that the Democrats are doing this just for politics are always going to be believe that. It's not going to change a lot of minds on the Democratic side.

(CROSSTALK)

CHALIAN: Wolf, I would just -

BLITZER: Go ahead.

CHALIAN: I would just note that a year ago we were talking, Donald Trump will get acquitted, it will embolden him. He lost the presidency and his party lost control of the United States Senate. The impact that this impeachment vote may have on 2022 or 2024 I think is really minimal.

BLITZER: That's an important point as well. All right guys, everybody stand by. We're following more breaking news. The CDC just reporting the biggest one-day increase in vaccinations so far.

Plus, details of new charges in the Capitol siege and the manhunt for more suspects.

[17:23:45]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: We're following breaking pandemic news tonight. The U.S. coronavirus death toll now tops 412,000 people with almost 25 million confirmed cases.

CNN national correspondent Erica Hill is joining us right now. Erica, so we're just getting word of a big uptick, and this is good, in vaccinations.

ERICA HILL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This is exactly what we want to see. The latest numbers from the CDC. We're seeing 1.6 -- nearly 1.6 million vaccines given. That's the biggest one-day increase reported so far, Wolf.

So, where do we stand overall? About 19 million doses administered of all of those distributed works out to about 48 percent. So, we're definitely seeing some improvement. Where we stand right now as a country, at this point, about 5 percent of the entire U.S. population has now had that first dose. But the struggles, as we know, are still getting in the way in many areas.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERICA HILL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With COVID-19 deaths still far too high, a blunt admission.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Did the lack of candor, did the lack of facts in some cases over the last year cost lives?

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: You know it very likely did.

HILL: More than 411,000 lives lost, nearly 4,000 more added just yesterday. Nationwide average new cases are down by more than 20 percent over the past week. One trouble spot, Virginia, where that number is moving in the opposite direction, up a staggering 19 percent.

[17:25:07]

While overall hospitalizations are declining.

DR. JONEIGH KHALDUN, CHIEF MEDICAL EXECUTIVE, MICHIGAN: Now just under 10 percent of in-patient beds in the state are being used for patients with COVID-19.

HILL: Hot spots remain.

MELODY NUNGARAY-ORTIZ, ICU NURSE, BANNER UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CENTER, PHOENIX: As soon as you start to tend to a situation, to try to get your bearings with that quickly another emergency arises.

HILL: In California, ICU availability is at an all-time low. Hard hit Los Angeles adding virus warning signs in high-risk areas.

LUIS GONZALEZ, SPOKESMAN, L.A. CITY COUNCIL MEMBER, GIL CEDILLO: We wanted to make it as powerful and as colorful as possible.

HILL: The CDC sparking confusion with new guidance about the coronavirus vaccine now advising it's OK to wait as long as six weeks between doses.

FAUCI: You're taking a chance.

HILL: Dr. Fauci walking that initial reaction back just hours later.

FAUCI: Sometimes the situation is stressed where it's very difficult to be exactly on time, so we're saying you can probably do it six weeks later. There's no disagreement at all between me and the CDC.

HILL: Meantime many eligible Americans still struggling to get their first dose.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You get a busy signal or no answer.

HILL: Six in ten people still don't know where or when they can get a vaccine according to a new study.

DR. PAUL OFFIT, DIRECTOR, VACCINE EDUCATION CENTER, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: We are just learning as we go and it's been painful.

HILL: The most common issue, supply.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Our biggest limiting factor right now is vaccine.

HILL: Florida cracking down on vaccine tourism to ensure enough doses for residents. The FDNY pulling back on planned vaccinations as New York City stock runs low.

Meantime, it won't look like this, but Super Bowl 55 will allow 22,000 fans to watch the big game in person. Among them some 7,500 vaccinated health care workers.

ROGER GOODELL, NFL COMMISSIONER: And we hope that this program will be a small way to celebrate you, honor you and most importantly thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILL (on camera): I want to just update you, too, on something we're hearing about the variant that was first identified in the UK. Today at a press briefing, Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying that he is told it may - may now be associated with a higher degree of mortality. He went on to say that the two vaccines being used in the UK are still showing themselves to be effective against both the new variant and the old one.

Now this comes on the heels of Dr. Fauci of course reiterating on CNN just this morning that there is a chance that that UK variant could become the dominant variant in the U.S. Because, in his words as he told us yesterday, it's twice as transmissible and that again underscores, Wolf, the need to ramp up vaccinations, to get as many people vaccinated as soon as possible especially if we are dealing with a variant that is in fact more transmissible.

BLITZER: Yes. This pandemic continues. Erica, thank you very much for that report.

Let's get some more on all of this. CNN medical analyst Dr. Leana Wen is joining us. An emergency room physician. She's the former Baltimore City health commissioner.

Dr. Wen, thanks so much for joining us. So, you just heard Erica's report that the CDC now says, maybe vaccine recipients can in fact wait as long as six weeks between doses. The recommended time between doses of the Pfizer vaccine is three weeks. For Moderna's vaccine, it's four weeks. So, why is the CDC potentially loosening this guidance?

DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: What's important to note hear, Wolf, that the science has not changed. That these vaccines were studied according to a very strict protocol of second doses, following the first dose by either three or four weeks, depending on whether it's Pfizer or Moderna.

I think what's happening now is that there is a supply problem and also that it's difficult for many patients to even get that second appointment for their second dose. And so, the CDC is saying, OK, if you have to wait four, five, six weeks, it's not ideal but you can still do it.

But I don't think that people should take away the wrong message. People should definitely understand that the three to four weeks as scheduled is ideal. And I hope that the federal government does a lot more to ensure that all those who get the first dose are able to get the second dose in a timely manner.

BLITZER: I hope so as well. Sadly, we hear these reports that people have appointments, they're supposed to go get the shot and show up and they say we're all out. No more supplies available.

Dr. Fauci also says, Dr. Wen, that Johnson & Johnson is within a week or two potentially of having its coronavirus vaccine data analyzed. That's a key step in the authorization process. How much of a difference would it make if you have another approved vaccine, especially one that only requires a single dose?

WEN: This would be a major game changer. That's because we know that the simpler the logistics, the more likely the operation is going to be successful. Because if you now have a vaccine that's one dose, we can give twice that number. And we already know that there have been so many bottle necks in distribution that having a one-dose vaccine and especially one that can be stored at refrigerated temperatures for months will really make a big difference here.

[17:30:00]

BLITZER: There are some contradictory pieces of information coming out of the U.K. over whether the highly contagious coronavirus variant discovered there may actually be more deadly. Is this yet another reason why it's so important right now to quickly vaccinate the population, because this virus is -- we don't know a lot about the virus that it could spread and mutate even more?

WEN: That's exactly right. So this U.K. variant that is so contagious, right now, most studies are showing that it's not more virulent. So for the individual, they're not going to get even sicker than they would with a normal variant. The problem, though, is if you have something that's more contagious, you're going to have more deaths, tragically as a result, and there are projections from the CDC showing that here in the U.S., that U.K. variant could become the dominant variant by March, and we have other variants that could be very contagious too.

BLITZER: Dr. Leana Wen, as usual, thank you so much for joining us.

WEN: Thank you.

BLITZER: Coming up, growing frustration of state officials weren't -- they're simply running out of the coronavirus vaccine. I'll speak with the Governor of New Jersey, who's among those who so frustrated with a vaccine rollout.

Plus, the hint for suspects in the siege of the U.S. Capitol is now leading to more arrests. We have new information when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:35:45]

BLITZER: Tonight, with less than 1 percent of the U.S. population fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, there's growing concern the state soon may run out of vaccine doses today. New Jersey's Governor Phil Murphy expressed his frustration with the pace of the federal COVID-19 vaccine rollout. Governor Murphy is joining us right now. Thanks so much Governor Murphy for joining us.

The White House says it has asked the CDC to look at the state's possibly running out of coronavirus vaccine doses. This comes after your neighboring Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York said his state was going to run out of doses potentially as soon as today. Are you at risk of soon running out of doses in your state of New Jersey?

GOV. PHIL MURPHY (D-NJ): Wolf, good to be with you. I'd say two things. First of all, it's night and day with the Biden administration after only a little bit more than 48 hours in terms of the national strategy to beat this pandemic. Secondly, I'm not as worried about running out as I am about not getting enough. We've got a huge supply demand imbalance. We've prioritized the workers we need to have at the ready to help us defeat the pandemic, and then the most vulnerable, seniors and folks with chronic conditions.

We're getting 100,000 doses a week. We could probably use two, three, four times that. So, again, I'm not -- I'm less worried unless new news pops up about running out as I am. This is going to take at the moment a lot longer than we had expected in early December. I think the Biden team has found that the cupboard is a lot better than anyone thought.

BLITZER: Yes, they're really going to move quickly on this because 3,000, 4,000, almost 5,000 some days, people are dying every single day here in the United States. So the Biden administration is now urging Congress, as you know Governor, to move forward with this new $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief plan. Unlike the last relief bill, this one does include state and local aid. So how much of a difference would that make in your ability to fight this pandemic and get people vaccinated?

MURPHY: It's a game changer, Wolf. It allows us -- people here state and local aid. It sounds very abstract, very distant. I'll tell you what it is. It allows us to keep in their jobs employed. The frontline workers, police, fire, educators, health care, EMS, delivering the services including vaccination and testing and other needs in this pandemic in our hour of need. That's what that translates into.

So, it's a game changer. I bemoaned the fact that we didn't get it in the $908 billion package. I love the fact that it's in the $1.9 trillion package. I've been saying for months this is a $3 trillion to $4 trillion moment. History won't be unkind if we overshoot. It'll be devastating through human suffering if we undershoot and so we need it and we welcome it.

BLITZER: President Biden says he has now directed FEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to open up to 100 community vaccination centers across the country within the next month or so. How much of a difference could that make to have federally supported vaccination sites operating in your states? And I still don't understand why there isn't a mobilization of the National Guard, the military, in helping save people's lives by getting them involved directly and vaccinating people.

MURPHY: Yes, so a couple things. The FEMA piece would be extremely helpful, but -- and this is the but -- it would need to come with more doses. So we've got 275 distribution points already in the state up and running, six mega sites. Our problem right now is dose supply. If the famous sites were set up with supply, as they -- by the way, famous but great to New Jersey -- as they set up early on in the testing, early moments to test, they were terrific. They came with the test kits. That would make a huge difference.

Secondly, a national guard in addition to the 500 and something men and women who are still in D.C., God bless them. I visited them on Wednesday, or Tuesday rather, they had been involved in New Jersey.

[17:40:00]

So if you're a help -- if you're a National Guard member with a healthcare background, we're finding ways for you to get into the mix. If you're not a healthcare background but you're in the in the guard, they've been helping doing great work getting the mega sites set up and operating.

BLITZER: That is so encouraging to hear that. We're grateful to all the men and women of the National Guard. Governor Murphy, thanks so much. Good luck to you. Good luck to everyone in New Jersey.

MURPHY: Thank you so much, Wolf.

BLITZER: Stay with us. We're going to take you to the Pentagon where the first African American defense secretary in U.S. history wasted no time and getting to work after his confirmation earlier in the day. And more arrests as the manhunt for suspects in that mob attack on the U.S. Capitol shows no signs of slowing.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: A historic day at the Pentagon, the nation's first African American Defense Secretary Retired General Lloyd Austin went to work shortly after the Senate confirmed him overwhelmingly by a vote of 93 to 2. Let's go to our Pentagon Correspondent Oren Liebermann. So Oren, tell us about the Secretary's first day now on the job.

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, shortly after that Senate confirmation, he came to the river entrance here of the Pentagon, the entrance closest to his office and nodded to the media as he came in, said a few words to the media as he approached and then went into his office. Part of his mission here was just to give a sense of return to normal, to business as usual, despite as you mentioned, of course, the historic nature of the day, with the first African American Secretary of Defense in the country's history.

[17:45:04]

After that, Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin immediately got to work. He had a briefing and meetings on COVID. He has said that would be the top priority for his office. And then crucially, he had his first phone call as Defense Secretary here. He talked to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, and he said they discussed the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and ongoing alliances. That call in and of itself and the fact that that was the only call of the day for him, is a message there, alliances, the importance of alliances are back, they will be stressed here, they won't be ignored or forgotten. The fact that it's the only call stresses that even more is expected to talk to more counterparts of his around the world, beginning tomorrow, many more.

But he's made clear from the beginning that his priority here is COVID and the handling of the COVID pandemic. That was stressed in a letter he sent to all of the military forces. This is part of that letter. "Doing my job also means helping our country get control of the pandemic, which has killed more than 400,000 Americans. You've already come to the aid of our nation's health care professionals. You can expect that mission to continue. But we must help the federal government move further and faster to eradicate the devastating effects of the coronavirus."

There, Secretary Austin making it clear that that's his top priority. That is the Department of Defense's top priority, and it will be moving forward here.

BLITZER: 93 to 2, what an overwhelming vote of confidence in the new Defense Secretary of the United States. Oren Lieberman at the Pentagon for us, thank you very much.

Coming up, metal detectors catch a congressman trying to bring a gun into the Capitol. Plus, there's breaking news. We're learning the reason why thousands of U.S. National Guard troops are staying in Washington right now. We have details. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [17:51:10]

BLITZER: There's more breaking news tonight. Sources are now telling CNN that concerns about unrest during former President Trump's upcoming impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate are part of the reason. Some 7,000 National Guard troops are not going to be staying in Washington through the end of the month.

Let's go to CNN's Whitney Wild, who's joining us right now. Whitney, these guard troops were part of the huge deployment following the attack on the U.S. Capitol. You have new information about the investigation, update our viewers.

WHITNEY WILD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Well, the details of these cases are highlighting the violence and the audacity of some of these defendants. For example, one man knew he was wanted and headed back to D.C. anyway.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILD (voice-over): Tonight, prosecutors are working to deliver justice to those involved in the deadly attack at the U.S. Capitol on January 6th. In just over two weeks, prosecutors have charged more than 125 people. Eric Munchel, the man who carried zip tie style restraining cops into the Senate chamber, appeared in federal court today in Tennessee. He faces three charges including conspiracy.

Also in court Samuel Camargo, a Florida man wanted by authorities for his role on January 6th. He told officials he knew he was wanted but tried attending the Presidential inauguration anyway. Investigators arrested him in Washington Wednesday. Now, he faces four different charges.

And a federal judge ruled today that Emanuel Jackson, the 20-year-old man caught on camera attacking Capitol Police with a baseball bat will remain in jail until trial, citing extreme disrespect for the law. Despite the already long docket, there remains a nationwide manhunt for even more suspects.

The FBI and ATF are increasing a reward $75,000 for information leading to the person responsible for planting pipe bombs at the RNC and DNC headquarters near the Capitol building.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's unbelievable.

WILD (voice-over): Republican Congressman Andy Harris of Maryland tried bringing a gun on to the House floor but was stopped after sending off metal detectors at a new security checkpoint Thursday. Those new security measures installed in the wake of the deadly attack have frustrated some Republicans. Other lawmakers say they feel unsafe even around their colleagues.

REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): We still don't yet feel safe around other members of Congress.

CHRIS CUOMO, CNN ANCHOR: How many are weak (ph)? OCASIO-CORTEZ: And I think a very considerable amount. A lot of members do not --

CUOMO: You really think that colleagues of yours in Congress may do you dirty?

OCASIO-CORTEZ: Yes. Well, one just tried to bring a gun on the floor of the House. You are endangering the lives of members of Congress. And it is absolutely outrageous that we even have to have this conversation.

WILD (voice-over): Oh, this, well, those asked to maintain peace and keep members of Congress safe. The National Guard were temporarily forced to take breaks in a parking garage rather than inside the Capitol. It is still unclear who gave the order to relocate the troops. Party leaders on both sides of the aisle were appalled.

SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R), MINORITY LEADER: I don't think a single senator feels that was acceptable. I'm glad the situation was resolved. And I hope we learn exactly what happened.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WILD: Well, officials say that all of those troops are now allowed back in the Capitol Complex. Wolf, importantly, officials are trying to figure out how to reduce these shifts and this burden on National Guard troops. They're hoping to reduce the shifts from 12 hours to eight hours to give these troops some much needed relief, Wolf.

BLITZER: Salute these men and women at the National Guard. They're protecting Congress, but they're also protecting all of us as well. CNN's Whitney Wild, thanks for that report.

There's more breaking news we're following. President Biden unveils his pandemic economic relief plan, saying, and I'm quoting now, we must act like we're in a national emergency. We're going to get details of two new executive orders the President just sign. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:59:28]

BLITZER: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in The Situation Room. We're following breaking news tonight. President Biden takes action on the deepening economic crisis here in the U.S. He just signed executive orders to speed stimulus checks, expand food stamps and raise the federal minimum wage. He says this country cannot let people go hungry or lose their jobs during this national emergency created by the coronavirus pandemic.

The President also seemed to welcome a potential delay in the Trump impeachment trial in the U.S. Senate. He says the more times his administration has to get up and running and respond to the crisis in America, the better.