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Quest Means Business
Biden to Speak as U.S. Jobs Recovery Falters; Brexit Talks have just been Put on Hold; Warner Brothers to Release 2021 Films in Theaters and on HBO Max; Biden Urges Action On Stimulus Package; Biden's Cabinet Diversity Will Be On His Own Terms; 100-Day Mask Wearing From January 20 Will Not Be Mandatory; Biden Team Plans Equitable Distribution Of Vaccine. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired December 04, 2020 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:38]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN HOST: This is the today when the Dow finally closes above 30,000? There is one hour of trading left to go. I am feeling more
confident about it than I did yesterday. There's no weakness apparently, if you look at that chart, maybe there can be, but nothing really that would
suggest otherwise. So 30,000 highly likely for the Dow.
The markets and how they look, and this is the way the day has gone.
The U.S. job recovery has stalled at the deadliest moment of the pandemic. President-elect Biden is due to speak any moment now. You'll hear him on
this program.
The Brexit talks have just been put on hold as Europe's Economic Commissioner tells me the risks are still unknown.
And cinemas are feeling the end credits. Their shares are falling for a second session after WarnerMedia's screaming bombshell.
We are live in New York, on Friday, it is December the 4th. I'm Richard Quest, and I mean business.
Good evening. Tonight, here is a statistic that will horrify everyone. Every 30 seconds, someone in the United States dies from coronavirus that's
on average. And it's one example of how the United States is sinking further and deeper into the crisis.
The deaths are spiking, restrictions are returning, and jobs are harder to find. Look at these two charts, they tell the story.
Coronavirus has killed nearly 12,000 people this week alone making it the country's leading cause of death and look and compare -- compare the number
of confirmed cases now with the summer spike after July the Fourth with what seems almost a century ago, back in March at the beginning of spring.
That's the first one to show how things are bad.
And on the economic side, jobs are not coming back fast enough. There you have on that chart, there are sharp losses in April -- March and April. You
have the reopening in June and a drift off right through to November where the U.S. only added 245,000 new jobs last month. There was an expectation
of nearly twice as many.
If we wanted to get back to where we were, you'd need 10 million jobs to re-employ all those to pre-pandemic levels. Any second now, the President-
elect is going to talk about the jobs report. We'll bring it to you when it happens. The November report and his recovery, that's when it takes place.
MJ Lee is in Wilmington, Delaware, where Joe Biden is set to speak. I mean, he's in a difficult position, the President-elect because he sees this
worsening situation, but he is absolutely powerless in the true sense of the word until January the 20th at 12 o'clock.
MJ LEE, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Richard, I think to say that he is in a difficult position is probably underselling the problems
that he is about to inherit in January, and I think it is really worth underscoring how impossible it is to separate out the COVID-19 pandemic
crisis from the economic crisis.
The U.S. jobs report that you just cited painting such a bleak picture of the economic outlook, so this is a President-elect who is about to inherit
the massive challenge of trying to contain this pandemic and this virus while at the same time trying to revive the economy, and I think this is
why we can very much expect Biden when he speaks in a few minutes here in Wilmington to again call on congressional leaders to get some kind of
stimulus bill through into law.
He has already said that he supports this $900 billion proposal that has been floating around, though he has been very clear, too, that is just to
start. He doesn't think that that will be nearly enough, but at least that is something to get started.
It is also why he has been talking so much in such great detail about the kinds of things that he would like to do once he actually is in office and
as you say, will actually have the power to start getting some things done.
[15:05:10]
QUEST: I'm confused on one issue over the last 24 hours, these hundred days mask mandate. I mean, it's voluntary, isn't it? He doesn't -- or maybe I've
missed the point here. Is he intending to ask or to instruct?
LEE: You know, when he sat down with our Jake Tapper yesterday and made that news, he didn't necessarily get into the details, but it's not
actually surprising that his idea is to generally ask the American public to wear masks for a hundred days. That's an idea that he has talked about,
again, even if he hasn't necessarily gotten into the details of how that would be enforced.
I do think the contrast, the stark contrast from the Trump administration's handling of the virus is incredibly notable, because it essentially is
saying, here's one idea that would be sort of enforced or that he would at least try to enforce on a national level, whereas the Trump administration
has been criticized from left and right for not having any kind of a Federal plan, right?
So again, we'll see once he is in office how he intends to enforce this idea of making everyone across the country wear a mask for a hundred days.
But this is just sort of the beginning and sort of the initial ideas that he is putting out there as we are some seven weeks away from Inauguration
Day still.
QUEST: MJ Lee with us from Wilmington, Delaware, where the President-elect is due to speak, and we'll have that for you when it takes place.
Investors don't seem too worried about the latest job numbers. The Dow as you see is trading above 30,000 again and showing the-disconnect between
markets and the overall economy. What is really going on here, of course, is just optimism, pricing in what's going to happen next year, but whether
or not you can price that in, I think is going to be the big question when we've seen the reality of the winter.
Now they say there are plenty of fish in the sea. A dispute overfishing is one of the major obstacles to a Brexit deal. You'll hear about why the
Brexit talks seemingly -- well, they are on hold, and we will talk to the fishermen next. It is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:10:00]
QUEST: Welcome back, Joe Biden has arrived at the venue where he's going to be giving his speech, his economic speech. When it does happen, we will
bring that to you. Here you see the President-elect arriving.
Yes, the foot -- the right foot is still in the boot. It will be for several weeks because -- he is managing to move pretty well, considering he
did tear up something in his ankle. Not sure what he actually did do. But anyway, we know how he did it, you know, playing with his dog. But anyway,
there he is. He's moving under his own steam.
When he speaks we'll bring it to you.
November's weak report, jobs report that we were talking about earlier is actually helping stimulus talks on Capitol Hill. A bipartisan plan is now
getting more traction.
A short time ago, the Democratic House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi said she could back the plan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): It's a good product. It's not everything we want, don't get me wrong. I don't want the Republicans to think that we that --
that this is a dream come true, it is not. But it's a path forward.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: That's Nancy Pelosi.
To Brexit now where the talks are on hold according to Europe's top negotiator, Michel Barnier. He says there are significant gaps and the two
sides will go away to debrief their respective bosses. The British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the European Commission President Ursula van der
Leyen.
Those two are to discuss the situation on Friday at a European Council. The two sides are trying to agree a trade deal before next week's Summit. The
French European Minister says any deal could be vetoed if it wasn't good for France.
Meanwhile, Europe's Economics Commissioner says the impact of a messy Brexit is still unknown. Paolo Gentiloni already thinks a V-shaped recovery
is off the table and he told me the negotiators need to do their job.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAOLO GENTILONI, EUROPEAN ECONOMICS COMMISSIONER: In our forecasts that I present every three months, we have always downside risk to the forecast,
and normally, it is new lockdowns. Upside risk to the forecast, and normally it is the vaccine. And then we have unknown factors to the
forecast. And normally it's Brexit.
So, the uncertainty on the outcome of these negotiations and of course, economic influence, but let the negotiators do their job, both on the new
trade agreement and on the implementation of the withdrawal agreement and then we will take note of the economic consequences.
QUEST: What's your forecast? What's your bet? And I don't just mean the down and the up? I mean, we know there was a sharp down therefore, there's
a sharp up.
But what's your forecast? What's your best feeling for how the community economy will look at the back end of next year?
GENTILONI: Indeed, with a rebound, not a rebound sufficient to bring us back to the level we had at the end of 2019. So we are not in the so-called
V-shaped recovery. Recovery will be much longer than the crisis we had.
But of course, the horizon with vaccine is giving a lot more optimism. What we see in this moment is that especially in services, and especially in
services with person to person contacts, the crisis is still very, very, very deep.
Manufacturing is doing better, but we can't imagine to be back to the level of growth of the pre-pandemic era before 2022 and maybe end of 2022.
QUEST: Finally, it's obviously an odd question, but it is a Friday. Is it more fun running a national government or being at the European Center?
Which feels better?
GENTILONI: Well, I think you can't compare the two things and maybe the pandemic even widened the differences because the main difference is you
don't have an immediate contact with your citizens, your public opinion, your own media, et cetera.
You are a little bit more working from your room, your offices, with very good technocracy and deciding very important thing maybe even more
important at the national level. But you lack this relation. And of course, you lack his relation even more during the pandemic.
[15:15:06]
QUEST: And isn't that exactly -- you've beautifully, sir, put your finger on it, isn't that the thing that the center that Brussels, the Commission,
whatever you want to call it, that the center has to work on, to build that relationship in some way accepting there's a Parliament, but the Parliament
is limited in that sense. But accepting that those running the center have to be able to touch the people.
GENTILONI: Of course, and this is one of the reasons why we have to complete our building because to have a stronger union, we need to have
also an accountable union and a stronger relation with our citizens.
We have a long way to go ahead, but I think it's the right one of the future of Europe.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: As the negotiations complete, or at least go on, Michel Barnier says fishing rights are one of the last major sticking points between the U.K.
and E.U.
In the final days of the Brexit talks, they have not managed to reach agreement. Anna Stewart explains what this fishing issue is all about.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER (voice-over): Fresh fish straight off the boat, caught in British waters are currently subject to E.U. rules. That could
change in the U.K.'s post Brexit future.
STEWART (on camera): Did you vote in the Brexit referendum?
TONY EARP, DECKHAND: Definitely.
STEWART: What did you vote for?
EARP: To leave. To leave. Definitely to leave.
STEWART: Why?
EARP: For the fishing industry. Why should we supply about 78 percent of the work and then back 20 percent of the catch?
STEWART (voice-over): Down the dock, Ike Grantham isn't sure Brexit will make any difference.
IKE GRANTHAM, RELIEF SKIPPER: I voted for leave, but now the government has decided to leave, the country has decided to leave. I'm quite happy with
that. Let's leave. But let's get the best deal out of it we can.
The trouble is, I don't think you're going to get the best deal as a fisherman.
STEWART (voice-over): This is Brixham, England's most valuable port and voted overwhelmingly for Brexit. The fishermen here want to see fewer
European boats in their waters. They also want to catch more fish.
Many species are currently restricted under the E.U.'s quota system.
STEWART (on camera): The fishing sector accounts for a tiny fraction of the U.K. economy contributing just 0.028 percent to GDP. And yet, the issue of
fishing rights has become one of the biggest hurdles when it comes to the U.K. and the E.U. reaching a trade agreement.
STEWART (voice-over): It's not just about economics, though, sovereignty is an emotive issue. These fishermen are out at sea for days or weeks at a
time, and it can be grueling, dangerous work.
STEWART (on camera): The problem of course with speaking to fishermen while they're actually fishing is they're incredibly busy pulling up a big haul
of fish.
So we're going to try and get hold of them through the wheelhouse with our captain here and see whether we can chat some questions across.
This is Anna Stewart from CNN. Hello.
GERRY PODSCHIES, CAPTAIN OF CARHELMAR: Hello there, yes, Gerry here, skipper of the Carhelmar. I think it's become a symbol of our independence
of taking back control of our territory and the dreaded Common Fisheries Policy.
I've seen the decline of our industry.
STEWART: A symbol you say. It is symbolic of Brexit. Is it going to become symbolic of Brexit's failure to take back control?
PODSCHIES: I've always had my doubts about any sort of deal in Brexit. I thought we were better off with no-deal and getting out, taking all our
chips off the table and then negotiating from a position of strength.
STEWART: You sound Brexit weary like many people across the U.K. Tell me, I see you voted for Brexit, would you do so again?
PODSCHIES: Definitely yes.
STEWART (voice-over): The Brexit ship has sailed. The trade negotiations are still in play, and these fishermen, so far removed from the politics of
Westminster and Brussels hope they are not forgotten.
Anna Stewart, CNN, Brixham, England.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Shares in the movie theater chains have taken a real beating after a potentially game changing decision from WarnerMedia, one of the industry's
biggest studios. Warner Brothers is rocking Hollywood in its decision to stream its 2021 films on HBO Max at the same time as they are hitting the
theaters.
The studio's lineup spans the genres: "Wonder Woman 1984," June and "In the Heights."
Shares an AMC and Cinema slipped on the initial announcement. AMC is now saying, well in their words, do all in our power to make sure Warner
Brothers doesn't hurt its business.
Of course, Warner Brothers and CNN are owned by WarnerMedia.
[15:20:03]
QUEST: WarnerMedia's chief exec, my boss, won't say of the arrangement is temporary, but its effect could be destructive for an industry that is well
used to dealing with disasters.
Is this the destruction of Hollywood? Well, Bow Tie Cinemas is no stranger to shift in entertainment. Us chain -- Bow Tie trace its history back to
1900 making the leap from vaudeville to talkies to surround sound and 3D. The great days.
Joe Mattia is the Chief Operating Officer of Bow Tie Cinemas, as well as president of the National Association of Theater Owners of New York. He
joins me from Connecticut via Skype. Joe, it is good to have you with me. Thank you, sir.
We have to go straight to Joe Biden --
JOE BIDEN (D), PRESIDENT ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: Earlier today, the November jobs report was released, and it was grim. It shows an economy
that is stalling and remain in the midst of a -- we remain in the midst one of the worst economic and job crises in modern history. But it doesn't have
to stay that way.
If we act now -- now, I mean, now -- we can begin to regain momentum and start to build back a better future. There's no time to lose.
Millions of people have lost their jobs or had their hours slashed. They've lost their health insurance or are in danger of losing their health
insurance. One in every six renters is behind in rent. One in four small businesses can't keep the doors open.
And there's a growing gap in black and Latino unemployment, and the gap remains much too large. And it's deeply troubling that last month's drop in
overall unemployment was driven by people who are dropping out of the job market, not because more people were being hired, dropping out of the job
market all together.
They've lost hope of finding a job. They're taking full time caregiving responsibilities as child centers remain closed and their children learn
remotely.
Over the past three months, 2.3 million more people are long term unemployed, meaning for 23 weeks or more. By far the largest increase on
record. This is a dire jobs report. This is a snapshot I might remind you up to mid-November.
Before the surge in COVID cases, we predicted, many predicted and the deaths rise that we've seen in December as we head into a very dark winter
ahead.
For example, since October, cities are down 21,000 educators just as schools need more help in fighting against the pandemic. A couple of days
ago, I spoke with a school crossing guard, a server, a restaurant owner and a stagehand. Good people, honorable people, decent, hardworking Americans
from across the country. It reminded me of my dad who lost his job in Scranton and eventually moved the family to Delaware, just outside of
Wilmington, a place called Claymont.
He used to say -- you've heard me say it before, Joey, I don't expect the government to solve my problems, but I expect them least to understand my
problems.
The folks -- I'm talking about the folks out there aren't looking for a handout, they just need help. They're in trouble through no fault of their
own.
Nothing they did caused them to have hours cut or lose your job or drop out of the market. But they need -- they need us to understand. We're in a
crisis. We need to come together as a nation. We need the Congress to act and act now.
If Congress and President Trump fail to act by the end of December, 12 million Americans lose their unemployment benefits they rely on. Merry
Christmas.
Unemployment benefits on the line to keep food on the table, to keep the lights on and the heat on, pay their bills. Emergency paid leave will end.
Moratorium on evictions will expire. States will lose the vital tools they need to pay for COVID testing and public health.
Put yourself in that position for anybody listing. Laying awake at night wondering what's going to happen tomorrow. It's going to be harder for
states to keep children and educators safe in schools, to try to provide assistance to keep small businesses alive.
States and cities are already facing large, large budget shortfalls this year. Again through no fault of their own.
[15:25:10]
BIDEN: They've already laid off more than a million workers. Even more teachers, firefighters, cops will lose their jobs unless Federal government
steps up now. All of this weakens our ability to control the virus if we don't step up now.
Emergency paid leave reduces the spread of COVID because it allows people to stay home when they're sick. States and cities need funding to direct
their COVID response, which is the only way we're going to end the economic crisis as well. The only way we're going to get people back to work.
I'm not alone in saying this situation is urgent. If we don't act now, the future will be very bleak. Americans need help, and they need it now. And
they need more to come early next year.
But I must tell you, I am encouraged by the bipartisan efforts in the Senate around $900 billion package for relief. It's a bipartisan effort. If
Congress says they will work out the details of this relief package, they're going to have to focus on resources for direct public health
responses to COVID-19.
We need meaningful funding for vaccines now. So don't lose time and leave people waiting for additional months. We need serious funding for testing
now. We need to ramp up testing to allow our schools and business to operate safely.
The sooner we pass the funding, the sooner we can turn the corner on COVID- 19.
You know, in the week since this election ended, there were questions about whether Democrats and Republicans could work together. I know many of you
are skeptical about my view that they will and can.
Right now, they are showing they can. Congress and President Trump have to get this deal done for the American people. But any package passed in the
lame duck session is not going to be enough overall, it is critical. But it's just to start.
Congress is going to need to act again in January.
Earlier today, I consulted with a number of my economic team, most of which have been announced by now. And Vice President Harris and I announced that
team last week.
As we inherit the public health and economic crises, we're working on a plan that will put forward for the next Congress to move fast to control
the pandemic, to revive the economy and to build back better than before.
We hope to see the same kind of spirit of bipartisan and cooperation as we're seeing today.
Our plan is based on the input from a broad range of people. The Vice President-elect and I have been meeting with since winning this election
last month, labor leaders, leading CEOs in the country, mayors and governors of both parties, parents, educators, workers, small business
owners.
There's a consensus that as we battle COVID-19, we have to make sure the businesses and workers have the tools, the resources and the guidance, and
the health and safety standards to keep businesses and schools open safely. It can be done.
Because here's the deal, a fight against COVID won't be won by January and January alone. To truly end this crisis, Congress is going to need to fund
more testing, as well as a more equitable and free distribution of the vaccine.
We need more economic relief to bridge through 2021 until this pandemic and economic crises are over. And then we need to build back better.
I said it before, an independent analysis by Moody's, a well-respected Wall Street firm projects that my build back better plan would create 18.6
million good paying jobs. This is based on a simple premise. Reward work in America, not wealth.
We're going to invest in infrastructure, clean energy and manufacturing and so much more. We will create millions of good paying American jobs and get
the job market back on the path to full employment.
This will raise income, reduce drug prices, advanced racial equity across the economy and restore the backbone of this country, the middle class.
Look, the bottom line. It's essential we provide immediate relief for working families and businesses now, not just helping get them on other
side of this painful crisis, but to avoid a much broader economic cost due to long term unemployment and businesses failing by acting now.
[15:30:10]
Even with deficit financing, we can add to growth in the near future. In fact, economic research shows that with conditions like the crisis today,
especially with such low interest rates, not taking action, the action I'm proposing, will hurt the economy, scar the workforce, reduce growth, and
add to the national debt.
Look, I know times are tough and the challenges are daunting but I know we can do this. We can create an economic recovery for all, for everybody. We
can move from crisis to recovery and to resurgence.
For Lord's sake, this is the United States of America. We've done it before and we'll do it again. We will. I promise you.
So, I thank the bipartisan group that's trying to put something together right now, we're going to need more bipartisanship as we move on.
God bless you guys and women who're doing this. God bless our country and may God protect our troops.
I'll stop there and I'll be happy to take some questions.
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Mr. President Elect, one of the biggest tasks that you will have when you enter office is distributing a vaccine.
Your team has started to meet with the Trump Administration to learn of their plans as you are set to inherit this task.
Are you satisfied with the current plans that are under for distributing that vaccine? Do you feel that the federal government is doing enough at
this point and what steps do you think need to be taken between now and when those first vaccines go out?
BIDEN: Well, there's a lot more that has to be done. They've clued us in on their planning, on how they plan to distribute the actual vaccine to the
various states but there is no detailed plan -- that we've seen anyway -- as to how you get the vaccine out of a container into an injection syringe
into somebody's arm.
And it's going to be very difficult for that to be done and it's a very expensive proposition.
For example, we agree with their priorities that they've laid out so far, I do at least, my team is looking at it -- of dealing with first responders
and those in nursing homes and in home care. The first people on the list.
But we also have to realize that we're in a situation where there has to be some equity in the way this is distributed. And that requires -- for
example, right now, we're in a situation where you have the leading cause of death for all Americans this week is COVID-19 but Blacks and Latinos are
three times as likely to die if they get COVID-19.
And so the communities of color, it's a mass casualty event.
And so we've got to figure out how we make sure we get the vaccine to those communities. Delivering large amounts of the vaccine to the Walmarts and
other major drug chains does not get you into a lot of these neighborhoods and it doesn't guarantee that it gets around. So, we've got a lot of work
to do.
And there has to be -- the equity side of this has to be an important part of distribution.
In addition to that, the cost of actually getting the serum into -- injection into a needle into somebody's arm costs a lot of money, it takes
a lot of people. It takes a lot of folks to be able to get that done. And we have to have a much better way than we've seen thus far as to how it's
distributed.
In some states, like the governor of Utah said just delivered to the capitol, I can take care of it in our conversation. Well, that could be
true.
But in large states like California, Texas, Illinois, Florida, et cetera, it's not that easy, there has to be an overall plan. That's what we're
working on right now. And that's why I asked Dr. Fauci to stay on and to be my chief adviser on this issue but also to be part of the COVID team.
SAENZ: And on your cabinet, you are facing a lot of pressure to add more diversity to your administration, you have civil rights groups and
lawmakers pushing you to do this, to make sure that you make good on your promise.
And you look at your cabinet announcements so far -- and they have included some diverse figures, but I specifically want to hone in on those big four.
And so far, when it comes to secretary of state and treasury, you have nominated a white man and a white woman.
[15:35:00]
So looking at attorney general and the department of defense, would you commit to nominating a person of color for those positions?
BIDEN: Look, it's each one of these group's jobs to push, push their leaders to make sure there's greater diversity.
What I can promise you is when this is all said and done, you see everyone that I've announced -- and it's going to be in the next several weeks,
we'll have it all out there -- you're going to see significant diversity.
I'm not going to tell you now exactly what I'm going to do in any department. But I promise you, it'll be the single most diverse cabinet
based on race, color, based on gender, that's ever existed in the United States of America.
SAENZ: So no commitment on those spots?
BIDEN: A commitment of what I just said. It'll be the most diverse cabinet in the main spots in both the White House as well as the cabinet positions.
SAENZ: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. President Elect. You just said a couple of minutes ago that there's no time to waste when it comes to
economic stimulus. But Democrats and Republicans have been in a stalemate for several months as they have been negotiating and trying to talk about
what kind of stimulus to put together.
You were elected by more than 80 million people to try to break that logjam. Can you talk about, specifically, what you have done over these
past several weeks to actually work with Democrats and Republicans, speaking to congressional leaders to get them to agree on a stimulus
package?
And what do you say to people like Senator Sanders on the left flank of your party who have come out against this stimulus program already? They
have said that this $900 billion deal is not good enough.
BIDEN: Well, it would be kind of stupid for me to tell you what I did, wouldn't it? Because it would be kind of hard to do it again.
I told you all that I was confident we'd get a bipartisan agreement on this. And I think we will, not just on this package, but I think beyond.
And the last thing I'm going to do is tell you strategically how I go about this.
I remember I used to get asked the same thing when I was putting together significant deals between Democrats and Republicans when I was a Senator
and Vice President. It's just not a very smart thing.
It's like me asking you, tell me how you get your sources and how'd you get those sources you got in order to get that story? That would be ridiculous
for you to tell me or your colleagues how you did it.
All I can say is I'm confident there are a sufficient number of Democrats and Republicans in the United States senate along with significant votes
coming out of the house of representatives to put together a serious package that will keep us from going off the edge here, provide the kind of
resources that are needed immediately.
It's not going to satisfy everybody.
But the option is, if you insist on everything, we're likely to get nothing on both sides. And so i think they're on their way to being able to come up
with a package that meets the basic, immediate needs that we have.
But I made it real clear, it's just a down payment. This is not the end of the deal.
So, I've been relatively good at negotiating over my career because I never, number one, reveal something somebody doesn't want me to on the
deal, and number two, because I always keep my word.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: There are a number of progressives, including Senator Sanders who have criticized this deal in part because it does not include
the $1,200 checks that were in the last deal. What do you say about that?
They say that the American people who are hurting, maybe not the small businesses but just the everyday families, they don't have anything in this
deal. They're not getting any of the stimulus that's in this $900 billion package.
BIDEN: Well, that's not what I understand but I think it would be better if they had the $1,200. I understand that may be still in play but I'm not
going to comment on a specific details.
The whole purpose of this is we've got to make sure people aren't thrown out of their apartments, lose their homes, are able to have unemployment
insurance they can continue to feed their families on as we grow back the economy.
Be in a position where we provide for help to localities so they're not continuing to lay off school teachers and firefighters, et cetera, first
responders. And to make sure we're in a position that we're able to generate the kind of growth that -- as a consequence of this, by allowing -
- it costs a lot of money to keep schools and businesses open on the COVID side of the equation they're all pieces that should be in there. There's
much more.
If I were writing it -- I think that the proposal that, quite frankly, the Heroes Act that the House passed, that's what I would support.
But this is a democracy, and there are -- you've got to find a sweet spot where you have enough people willing to move in a direction that gets us a
long way down the road but isn't the whole answer.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you.
BIDEN: Thank you.
[15:40:00]
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. President Elect. You're describing this compromise bill as a down payment, that you'll push congress to do
more once you're in office but this bill is already more than Republican leaders want to spend.
What if this isn't a down payment, what if this bill is it, what are your options then to get Americans additional relief?
BIDEN: I never start off thinking that way, I always start off believing we can get it done. We'll get it done.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: But it's been more than six months this fight has been going on. Mitch McConnell still hasn't even signed off yet on this
compromise bill. What makes you so confident that you will be able to get Republicans to go big once you're in office?
BIDEN: Well, because the country's going to be in dire, dire, dire straits if they don't.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Have you reached out to Leader McConnell, have the two of you spoken yet?
BIDEN: We'll be in dire trouble if we don't get cooperation. I believe we will.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. President Elect. You noted today that one in six renters are behind in their rent, millions of Americans remain
unemployed. You say the situation is urgent.
When you come into office, do you expect to pass executive orders dealing with those specific issues and also, do you at all plan to pass trillions
of dollars of aid? Is that what you have in mind when you say we need to go big or are we looking at billions of dollars?
BIDEN: We're looking at hundreds of billions of dollars. And look, again, I've learned after hanging out in this business for a while, the last thing
you do before you begin a negotiation is lay down a drop dead marker. And if it's not this, I'm not going to talk to you.
I think there's a lot we can get done and I think people are going to see the overwhelming necessity.
What's going to start to happen is a lot of folks who represent Republican districts are going to find their Republican neighbors are in real trouble
as things get worse. They're going to find that there's an overwhelming need as these numbers skyrocket.
You remember my saying that I believe the experts, we would have least another 250- dead before the end of the year and they went, oh, no, no.
Guess what, look what's happening. It's going to get much worse, it's going to get much worse.
And so, I believe that there are enough Republicans who will join enough Democrats in the United States senate to get a majority along with the
House to get it done.
But we'll see, we'll see. This is a step at a time.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And on executive orders?
BIDEN: Well, I'd issue executive orders that are totally within the purview of an executive.
But one of the things I don't like is I like -- I don't like people saying that I can by executive order do the following things which there is no
basis in the constitution to suggest it can be done. So there are certain things I can do.
I can issue executive orders, I'm pulling back some of the executive orders that Trump put forward.
But I can't issue an executive order saying we're going to spend X billion dollars on this issue without getting it -- congress appropriates and is
responsible for distributing that money.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: And then quickly on the coronavirus vaccine. You talked about getting it into African-American and vulnerable populations.
You've said yourself that you're willing to get the vaccine publicly to get people to feel safe.
But there are people already telling me, well, President Elect Biden has good health care, if there are some complications, he might have better
health care than me, African-Americans around the country.
What more can you do to convince people that the vaccine is safe for them? And does that mean you'll at all lean on any existing members of the
coronavirus task force -- I know you have committed to keeping Dr. Fauci but is there Dr. Birx, is there anyone else you might be leaning on to
convince people?
BIDEN: There are a lot of people I'm looking to convince people on the task force. And the task force will continue to be expanded with really fine
people.
And look, I think actions of presidents matter. And I'm going to say something that I think the African-American community, Latino community
have known, I've never misrepresented anything to them.
And that, if as you all keep pointing out, I'm the oldest president ever elected -- although I'm actually only 47. But all kidding aside, I think
that my taking the vaccine and people seeing me take that vaccine is going to give some confidence.
But I said early on, you may remember, I think you may have asked me the question, I may be mistaken.
[15:45:00]
But I said early on that I think one of the things that bothers me the most is by the wild assertions the administration is making about how this was
going to go away and inject bleach and all those kinds of things, it was diminishing confidence across the board.
And the American people overall particularly this administration with the African American Latino community -- what I heard from my friends in the
community and not but blocks from here as we stand -- is that well, we're not going to be the guinea pigs, we're not going to be the guinea pigs.
Well, the fact of the matter is that they won't be. You're going to see tens of millions of Americans taking the vaccine and you're going to see
the president of the United States and three of the four living former presidents doing it publicly as well.
It's all about -- and look, it's going to make some effort to rebuild confidence in science because it's been so diminished in this
administration thus far. So.
But I will -- and by the way, in the meantime I'm going to make sure that the vaccine is both free and available and that any follow-up on the
vaccine is free and available that relates to any health complications from it.
So, there's ways that we can deal with some of these issues. Biden has good health care, therefore -- but I don't have good health care. That's another
thing we're working on from day one. I've been working on it at this moment.
And so, my hope is that we can instill -- reinstill some confidence and be able to believe the president of the United States when he or she speaks.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you.
BIDEN: Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you, Mr. President Elect. A lot of people are wondering what your inauguration is going to look like, considering --
BIDEN: So am I.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: -- considering that we are still in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.
So I'd like to hear what you envision for the inauguration, do you expect a scaled-down event? Are you still planning to take the oath on the west
front of the Capitol, whether it be a parade, will there be balls? What do you envision for your inauguration?
BIDEN: Well, first and foremost thing is we're going to follow, again, the science and the recommendation of the experts on keeping people safe. So it
is highly unlikely there will be a million people on the mall going all the way down to the memorial.
I think we'll see -- we're in discussion with the house leadership and the senate leadership as to what they plan for the inauguration, particularly
those 200,000 spots they control.
But I think you're going to see something that's closer to what the convention was like than the typical inauguration.
First and foremost in my objective is to keep America safe but still allow people to celebrate, to celebrate and see one another celebrating.
And so we're in consultation, my team is in consultation with folks who helped us put on the convention, as well as with our colleagues, Republican
and Democratic colleagues in charge of the inauguration.
My guess is there probably will not be a gigantic inaugural parade down Pennsylvania Avenue but my guess is, you'll see a lot of virtual activity
in states all across America engaging even more people than before.
But that's in train now. And I'm not in a position to give you an example of exactly what it will look like.
But I promise you it'll be available either virtually or in person for many and my guess is there'll still be some -- it's supposed to b a platform
ceremony. But I don't know exactly how it's all going to work out.
The key is keeping people safe. I can't do a super version of the president's announcement in the Rose Garden nationwide so it's just going
to have to be more imaginative.
But I think, like I said, I think the convention we put on really opened up avenues that we never thought existed and I doubt there will be another
Democratic -- at least a Democratic Convention that is as straight like it always has been. I think we can include more people.
People want to celebrate, people want to be able to say we've passed the baton, we're moving on, democracy has functioned.
I wish i could tell you more. But as those decisions are made, they'll be announced.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: OK. And I also wanted to ask you about your relationship with Senator McConnell. I know the two of you have a long
history of actually working together on various deals.
[15:50:00]
Have you talked to him since the election? And given the partisan nature of congress right now, how do you convince him that it's in America's best
interests to work with you going forward?
BIDEN: I don't think I have to convince him of that. He knows me, he knows I'm as straight as an arrow when I negotiate. He knows I keep commitments
and I never attempt to embarrass the opposition.
There are some things that I think are just ready for the kind of compromise that Democrats and Republicans are prepared to engage in, absent
the present president of the united states' attitudes on some of these issues.
Infrastructure. Dealing with health issues. Dealing with the fight against cancer. Dealing with education. I think there's a number of things.
As I said before, we've got to take the vitriol out of politics. I know there's a lot of people on both sides who want to continue to go after and
punish the opposition, I get that.
I get the fact that an awful lot of Americans are disappointed I was elected president. Fortunately, there's 7 million more that were happy than
disappointed, but I get that. And there's a lot of Democrats who are angry and want to strike back at Republicans.
But I've said from the beginning, I think I've conducted myself this way throughout my career -- I learned that early lesson.
It's always appropriate to question another man or woman's judgment but never their motive. Once you question their motive then, in fact, there's
no way to get to go. You're in the pocket of the cement industry, let's do a deal on highways. No possibility.
And so when I've dealt with Mitch McConnell in the past as the vice president or as a senator, we haven't engaged in that activity. It doesn't
mean we can get to an agreement, I'm not asking anybody to abandon their principles.
But I do think it makes no sense to engage in vitriol in trying to get to a place where I can't believe that a majority of the Republicans don't
understand we need a new infrastructure in America.
If there was nothing to do with jobs or a green economy, just too many bridges that are going to collapse, too many roads in disrepair, too many
Republican states that every time it floods, they flood out -- their water systems are polluted. These are common problems.
And I'm confident -- it's going to be hard and I'm confident we can get to agreement on a number of things that'll be of consequence.
Thank you all so very, very much. Is that it? Thank you. Appreciate it. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: (Inaudible) be mandatory?
BIDEN: No, I don't think it should be mandatory, I wouldn't demand it be mandatory. But I would do everything in my power -- just like I don't think
masks have to be made mandatory nationwide, I'll do everything in my power as the president of the United States to encourage people to do the right
thing. And when they do it, demonstrate that it matters.
That's why I said, in my inaugural speech, I'm going to ask people to commit for 100 days to wear a mask. Not because I'm asking it for any
reason to punish -- this is not a political issue, it's become one.
But if people do it for 100 days in the middle of what will be still a raging crisis and the vaccine is able to be distributed, they're going to
see deaths drop off the edge, they're going to see hundreds of thousands of people not getting sick.
And my hope is they'll be then inclined to say, OK, it's worth the patriotic duty to go ahead and protect other people.
Thank you all so very much. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Are you going to Georgia?
BROOKE BALDWIN, ANCHOR, CNN NEWSROOM: That is a man who sounds more like a president who cares about Americans who are struggling than what we have
seen and heard from President Trump these last couple of weeks.
I've got Gloria Borger and Catherine Rampell and MJ Lee and Dr. Davidson.
We'll talk to them here in just a minute. But Gloria, let me begin with you.
When we kept hearing President Elect Biden just talking about the job loss, the job numbers, and saying it's not your fault, we are in a crisis. What
do you think of that?
GLORIA BORGER, CNN CHIEF POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think he was making a plea to the American congress and to Mitch McConnell with whom -- it was
very interesting, he wouldn't say whether or not he was talking with him.
BALDWIN: Neither time he was asked.
BORGER: And last time he said he hadn't spoken with him, so, perhaps you'd assume that maybe he has.
[15:55:00]
But what he did try and do is say, look, we're all in this together. We are in a crisis right now, that's Democrats, that's Republicans.
Encourage the congress to work on this bipartisan measure while making the point that it is just a down payment because he sees more coming after he
is inaugurated.
But just kind of put it all out there and said this is for the American people, this is not for Republicans or Democrats.
And didn't try and sugar coat the situation the country is in right now. And made it very clear that we are in a crisis.
BALDWIN: He talked about the -- was encouraged by the bipartisan effort on the senate side, the $908 billion stimulus plan.
He said, Catherine, it's just a down payment, not the end of the deal. Still a lot of questions about what will or won't exist, like that $1,200
check question in that stimulus. What will that do, where will that go?
CATHERINE RAMPELL, "WASHINGTON POST" OPINION COLUMNIST: I think Biden was being very strategically vague about what he expected of congress versus
what he expects to be able to do unilaterally through executive action. And I think he's doing that with a reason, right.
He wants to -- he would prefer to have congress act, he's a long-term senate guy, he believes in the power of the legislature. But he is still
reserving some weapons of his own in his quiver, arrows in his quiver, to be able to do some things unilaterally if, in fact, the senate and congress
do not act.
But I think what was really interesting here is that you heard him make an argument for further stimulus, basically on two grounds.
One is the humanitarian justification, right, that people are suffering, it's not their fault, we shouldn't let them be evicted, we shouldn't let
them go hungry. But the other argument that he was making was really about long-term economic growth.
That there is sort of an investment that we can be making here to prevent long-term scarring in the economy that would come from long-term
unemployment, from permanent business closures, from children falling behind in school.
And I think that argument may have been pitched a little bit more towards Republicans who are concerned or at least claim to be concerned about the
country's debt issues, long-term debt issues.
And he was saying, no, no, no, no this may cost us less in the long run because it preserves the country's economic capacity.
BALDWIN: Thank you, Catherine. And Dr. Rob Davidson, here's my question to you. Because he was asked specifically by our correspondent, Arlette, about
vaccine distribution, are you satisfied with the current plans that are under way.
And this is what I jotted down. He said that they have clued us in on the planning to distribute the vaccine to states but there are no detailed
plans as to how you get the vaccine out of the container and into a syringe and into someone's arm. Does that concern you?
DR. ROB DAVIDSON, EMERGENCY ROOM PHYSICIAN, WEST MICHIGAN: Yes, it concerns me greatly. I think Operation Warp Speed to develop a vaccine is great but
if you can't get it actually injected to people twice, spaced by a month apart, and convince enough people that it is the right thing to do, it
really doesn't matter how many deep freeze freezers you have and how many doses you have.
So I'm hoping that the coronavirus task force is listening. I'm hoping working with the transition they can ramp this up. I'm confident in the
leaders in our state particularly in the governor's office working on state-based plans.
But I worry -- yes, I worry greatly that this might not get there as quickly as it has to.
BALDWIN: Arlette Saenz, I was just talking about you. You asked that great question about vaccine distribution, I was getting Dr. Davidson's reaction
to part one of his answer to you. Do you want to encapsulate what we just heard in the next 60 seconds?
SAENZ: Well, Brooke, you heard the president elect talking about how his team is in contact with the Trump Administration but also saying that they
haven't received full detailed plans about how exactly this vaccine will be executed.
Something else that you heard Biden talk about was his belief that he thinks that this vaccine also needs to be distributed to ensure some of the
racial inequities are addressed.
Black and Latino populations have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19 throughout this pandemic and Biden wants to ensure that those
communities will have access and will be able to access these vaccines when they are widely distributed.
Another point that I asked Biden about was the diversity in his cabinet. And he told me that he can't make an explicit commitment right now to
naming a person of color to attorney general or the defense department but to ensure that he is promising that his cabinet and administration will be
diverse.
BALDWIN: Arlette, thank you so much. There's so much more to go through from what we just heard from the president-elect.
We'll let Jake take it over from here. I thank you all for sticking around with me.
So important, this messaging. And he said if Congress and Trump don't act by the end of December, 12 million Americans will lose unemployment
benefits. Merry Christmas.
Much more to come here on "THE LEAD" with Jake Tapper. I'm Brooke Baldwin.
END
