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The Situation Room
President-Elect Joe Biden Announces Cabinet Picks; Michigan Certifies Election Results; More Top Republicans Speaking Out Against Trump's Legal Absurdities; Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE) Is Interviewed About Biden's Cabinet Choices; Millions Traveling For Holiday Despite Urgent CDC Warning; Biden Holds Virtual Meeting With U.S. Mayors; How A Bloody Night Of Bullets & Brutality Quashed A Young Protest Movement. Aired 5-6p ET
Aired November 23, 2020 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[17:00:00]
ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: So she said goodbye to her husband of 52 years over FaceTime. Our deepest condolences to the (inaudible) family and to all of those who have lost loved ones to this pandemic. I'm Erica Hill in for Jake Tapper today. Our coverage on CNN continues right now.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Welcome to our viewers here in the United States and around the world. I'm Wolf Blitzer in THE SITUATION ROOM. We are following breaking news.
President-elect Joe Biden announcing historic picks for top posts in his cabinet including former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen to be the country's first woman Treasury Secretary.
He is also naming the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community and the first Latino to lead the Department of Homeland Security. As well as the first-ever special envoy for climate.
Also breaking right now, a new defeat, a very important defeat for President Trump as he seeks to overturn the U.S. election. A Michigan board has just voted to certify the state's results despite a lot of pressure from the president to try to overturn them, making it even clearer that the president, right now, has no path forward.
We are also following breaking pandemic news. The U.S. death toll has now topped 257,000 people and the number of cases here in the United States is growing at an alarming rate, now past 12.3 million with one quarter of them, some 3 million confirmed just this month and it's only November 23rd.
Let's get to the breaking transition news first. CNN's Jessica Dean is joining us from Wilmington, Delaware. Jessica, some very, very important posts being filled on a very speedy rate by the president- elect of the United States.
JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf. They are moving at a very quick pace. We are learning just this afternoon President-elect Joe Biden is poised to name Janet Yellen as his Secretary of Treasury. She is of course a former chairman of the Federal Reserve and if confirmed, would be the first woman ever to hold this post.
This news coming as we got more announcements. We got the first round of picks from President-elect Biden.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN (voice-over): President-elect Joe Biden today announcing his first cabinet nominees. Focusing on his on foreign policy and national security teams. The picks rolling out ahead of Biden's virtual meeting with the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
Among Biden's choices, longtime adviser Tony Blinken to serve as Secretary of State. Blinken served as Deputy Secretary of State during the Obama administration and is national security adviser to Biden when he was vice president.
TONY BLINKEN, FORMER DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE, OBAMA ADMINISTRATION: -- and the greatest public servant I know, the vice president of the United States, Joe Biden.
DEAN (voice-over): That selection welcomed today by former President Barack Obama.
BARACK OBAMA, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He was part of our inner circle in all our key meetings throughout my presidency. He is outstanding. Smart, gracious, a skilled diplomat, well regarded around the world.
DEAN (voice-over): Biden's other picks including Alejandro Mayorkas to serve as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security. Mayorkas is a former deputy secretary of DHS, would be the first Latino and immigrant to serve in that position.
Avril Haines to be director of National Intelligence. Haines, a former deputy director of the CIA and deputy national security adviser, would be the first woman to lead the U.S. intelligence community.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, a career foreign service official to serve as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. And Jake Sullivan, a long time Biden adviser and former aide to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to serve as national security adviser.
OBAMA: The reports are that Jake Sullivan will serve as national security adviser. Wicked smart, young, energetic, and I think is going to be outstanding.
DEAN (voice-over): Former Secretary of State John Kerry will become the special presidential envoy for climate and will have a seat on the National Security Council. This marks the first time someone dedicated to climate is a member of the NSC.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT-ELECT OF THE UNITED STATES: We want you to know that we're here for you and we're going to listen to you and work with you.
DEAN (voice-over): As Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris move forward with the transition including today's mayor's meeting, the formal transition process continues to be blocked by the General Services Administration leading the Biden team to voice concern about the impact.
RON KLAIN, CHIEF OF STAFF OF PRESIDENT-ELECT BIDEN: We are not in a position to get background checks on cabinet nominees. And so there are definite impacts. Those impacts escalate every day and I hope that the administrator of the GSA will do her job.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN (on camera): We are expecting to see President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris tomorrow afternoon, Wolf, where they will be speak to give their first in-person comments on these nominations and appointments, Wolf.
[17:05:00]
BLITZER: And of course, we'll have coverage of that tomorrow. A historic day. Jessica Dean reporting for us. Thank you.
Let's go to the White House right now. Our chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta is joining us. Jim, the president's legal team is in complete disarray right now. Support is obviously crumbling for his efforts to try to reverse this election lost. And he apparently has very few options left.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Wolf. And big breaking news out of the state of Michigan at this hour as the board of state canvassers there has certified its results for the 2020 presidential election.
We're just getting this in the last several minutes. Michigan 16 electors will go to Joe Biden. There were some drama in Michigan over whether Republicans on that board in that state would sabotage the results in that state.
But in the meantime, some of the president's biggest supporters are panning Mr. Trump's legal team as you were just referencing a few moments ago, Wolf, with one key ally, Rush Limbaugh, saying the legal team, they promise blockbuster stuff and then nothing happened.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA (voice-over): Becoming something of a hermit-in-chief, President Trump steered clear of the cameras yet again and was even unusually silent on social media for much of the day as more top Republicans slam Mr. Trump's legal team for serving up nothing burgers in his quest to upend the 2020 election.
RUSH LIMBAUGH, HOST, RUSH LIMBAUGH SHOW: You call a gigantic press conference like that, one that lasts an hour and you announce massive bombshells, then you better have some bombshells. They promised blockbuster stuff and then nothing happened, and that's just -- that's not -- well, it's just -- it's not good.
ACOSTA (voice-over): Even though some of the president's advisers urged him to dump attorney Sidney Powell from his legal team.
SIDNEY POWELL, TRUMP LEGAL TEAM: President Trump won by a landslide. We are going to prove it.
ACOSTA (voice-over): It's unclear whether that will satisfy close allies like former New Jersey governor Chris Christie who are losing patience with Mr. Trump's efforts to cling to power.
CHRIS CHRISTIE, FORMER GOVERNOR OF NEW JERSEY: The content of the president's legal team has been a national embarrassment. I've been a supporter of the president. I voted for him twice, but elections have consequences and we cannot continue to act as if something happened here that didn't happen.
ACOSTA (voice-over): The president's latest long shot scheme, pressuring state lawmakers in key election battle grounds to overturn the will of the voters appears to be falling flat too. Election officials in Michigan are beginning to indicate they will certify the 2020 results.
REP. FRED UPTON (R-MI): You know, the voters spoke and here again in Michigan it's not a razor-thin margin. Its 154,000 votes. You got to let those votes stand.
ACOSTA (voice-over): Mr. Trump's tactics are aggravating some in the GOP with Alaska senator Lisa Murkowski saying in a statement, "A pressure campaign in state lawmakers to influence the electoral outcome is not only unprecedented but inconsistent with our democratic process."
LARRY HOGAN, GOVERNOR OF MARYLAND: Now we are beginning to look like we are a banana republic. It's time for them to stop the nonsense. It just gets more bizarre every single day and, frankly, I'm embarrassed that more people in the party aren't speaking up.
ACOSTA (voice-over): Even though President-elect Joe Biden has beaten Mr. Trump by more than 6 million votes and triumphed in the Electoral College, the president's campaign has sent more than 330 fundraising e-mails to build up a slush fund for the future.
But a White House adviser said the president should just let it go telling CNN "his actions are irrelevant at this point. He lost by a landslide."
Some of the more ceremonial functions of the administration are still on display as the First Lady welcomed this year's White House Christmas tree. But the White House is still going forward with holiday parties despite warning from administration health experts.
JEROME ADAMS, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: Well, we want everyone to understand that these holiday celebrations can be superspreader events. Go to cdc.gov and look for the tips for everyone. These apply to the White House, they apply to the American people. They apply to everyone. We want you to stay safe so we can get to a vaccine.
(END VIDEOTAPE) ACOSTA (on camera): Now, besides the breaking news out of Michigan, the president has suffered yet another loss in court in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has just ruled against the Trump campaign in its efforts to block the counting of some absentee ballots in the commonwealth. That clears the way for those ballots to be counted in places like Philadelphia which is obviously beneficial to Joe Biden.
As one White House adviser said to me just a little while ago, the president is nearing the end of exhausting his options for challenging the 2020 election results. As this adviser put it, it's the end of the road for the president. Wolf?
BLITZER: It certainly is. He is losing, losing, and losing. Jim standby. I want to bring in our senior political reporter, Nia-Malika Henderson and our political commentator Van Jones.
Nia, with this first round of cabinet announcements, the president- elect is focusing in on national security and foreign policy. So what message does this send?
NIA-MALIKA HENDERSON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL REPORTER: You know, experience. If you look at this team, these are folks who know their way around the building and these are people who know their way around the world as well.
Biden has come in saying that he wants to restore America's stature, America's place in the world. He will likely have a huge portfolio, a domestic portfolio with coronavirus and the economy and the health -- the consequences of that pandemic.
[17:10:04]
So these are folks who can go out on the national stage and carry his message. I think it also says diversity. Biden has talked about wanting a cabinet that looks like America so he has some first's in there.
The DNI, also at DHS, and some diversity in there as well with the U.N. So he is, I think, making good on some of the campaign promises that he made with his first array of cabinet picks.
BLITZER: Yes, that is an important point. You know, Van, so far the Biden cabinet, as it's shaping up right now, full of a lot of familiar faces with extensive amount of experience. It's also, as Nia says, a rather diverse group. Is the president-elect living up to the promises he made?
VAN JONES, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: Listen. So far, so good. These are solid, solid people. If you take away the diversity points, solid, people you can have confidence in. I'm actually -- it's funny. John Kerry, who is a non-diverse person, if that is even a word, I'm excited that he got somebody in that role. I mean, you go and get John Kerry who's, you know, done it all. He's
been a senator, he's a war hero, a presidential nominee, Secretary of State. You give him the big ball. The big ball is can we get back in the Climate Accord. Can we get back on path to having a planet for our kids and for our grandkids?
You bring in somebody, truly a legend and an icon on the team to deal with that. You got a lot to be happy about if you're a Democrat. You also got a lot to be happy about if you're an American because these are the kind of people who know how the make the government work.
BLITZER: You know, Jim, I understand you're getting some new information about the president's outlook when it comes to his unsuccessful legal challenges.
ACOSTA: Yes, Wolf. You know, we know over the last 24 hours that the president and his legal team, they soured on Sidney Powell who was a part of that legal team until she was thrown under the bus. Now, I'm hearing from a White House adviser that the president is also souring on his long-time personal attorney Rudy Giuliani's handling of these challenges in court.
I asked this adviser, you know, are you getting tired of Giuliani? Is the president getting tired of Giuliani? And this adviser said, "We all are!" And as we're seeing what is happening in Michigan and what's taking place in Pennsylvania, this adviser was also noting that the president is essentially running out of potential challenges, running out of options in terms of overturning this election.
In the words of this adviser, it's the end of the road for the president. But this adviser went on to say that this is starting to sink in with President Trump himself.
This adviser just telling me a few moments ago, Wolf, that the president understands that soon he will no longer be able to use Air Force One. So, it is starting to sink in with the president that the game is up.
BLITZER: Yes. It's over. And the president has no choice but to acknowledge that sooner rather than later. Nia, as we noted, the Michigan state board of canvassers dealt this huge blow to the president, voting to certify the state's election results in favor of President-elect Biden. So how much longer do you think the president can continue to fight the president-elect's victory?
HENDERSON: Forever. I don't expect him ever to give this game up. This has been a lie that he has been telling for weeks and weeks and weeks. This idea that somehow the election was stolen from him and stolen from him by voters particularly in cities like Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Milwaukee.
He has told his followers that. They, by and large, believe him. So I don't expect to ever to give this up. This is his new conspiracy theory. It's his new con to really get money I think in some ways from his followers and maybe sort of reinvent himself in a post-presidency where he can still have a lock on his base, a lock on a lot of levers of power in the Republican Party.
So, you know, I mean, the president rarely admits that he is wrong. You see him now even blaming Rudy Giuliani and blaming his other lawyers as if it's their fault that they have gone into court at his behest on a lie and a conspiracy theory. That was his idea originally. I don't think it's an idea that he'll ever let go of.
BLITZER: You know, Van, we are seeing at least some Republicans break with President Trump but so many more, including power players like Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, they have been so reluctant, so fearful to actually do the right thing and congratulate President- elect Joe Biden, while world leaders, they've been rushing to acknowledge the incoming president. So what does that say?
JONES: I mean, it says that the time has come for them to worry less about the twitter cycle and more about the history books. Everybody who participates, especially now that Michigan is off the table, the guy literally has no chance.
Everybody who continues to participate in this farce, it's their legacy, it's their kids, it's their grandkids who are going to look at their names beside this, who stood up for American democracy and who stood against it.
[17:15:00]
That's what you're going to determine this week. There is no more -- you know, Michigan, there was an unbelievable, unfair pressure put on those elected officials. They stood up to the president. They did the right thing. The game is over. We need business leaders and Republicans to stand up now.
BLITZER: Yes, with the exception of Russia's Putin, almost every major world leader has now called Biden to congratulate him. Jordan's King Abdullah today making that phone call. The NATO secretary-general, Stoltenberg, making that phone call today -- call after call after call. Now let's see if the Republican leadership does the same. All right guys, thank you very much, Van Jones, Nia-Malika Henderson, and Jim Acosta.
Up next, we'll talk to someone with very close ties to the president- elect about his cabinet picks. The Delaware senator, Chris Coons. He is standing by live.
Plus, results announced from another potential coronavirus vaccine trial. Dr. Anthony Fauci is calling it good news as cases across the U.S., though, are exploding.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:25:00]
BLITZER: The breaking news this hour, President-elect Joe Biden announcing historic picks for top posts in his cabinet including former Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen to become the country's first woman secretary of the treasury. Joining us now to discuss this and more, a very close Biden ally,
Democratic Senator Chris Coons of Delaware. Senator, thanks so much for joining us. What message do you think president-elect Biden is sending with these cabinet nominees and we put some of them up on the screen right there.
SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): Well, Wolf, these are very impressive picks. This is a team of folks who have deep experience in public service, who previously been confirmed by the Senate and who are experts in the specific fields to which they have been nominated.
I'm very optimistic that this broadly representative and highly talented team will be confirmed and will move us towards a Biden/Harris administration that is led by, run by folks who are competent, skilled, and experienced.
BLITZER: They certainly do have a lot of experience. Most of them did work in the Obama administration. There are a lot of familiar faces there from the Obama administration who are going to be coming into the new Biden administration.
But what do you say, senator, to those who view this as Obama 2.0? Should there be some fresh voices in the new administration at the same time?
COONS: Well, there are. This is not just a retread of the Obama leadership team. Folks are in new roles, different roles and there are people who were not in Obama/Biden leadership roles.
So, I do think this is a good and an encouraging mix. There is also folks with new roles. So for example, John Kerry, former Secretary of State, former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, will be a special envoy on climate and he will jump-start our re-engagement with the world on climate.
Linda Thomas-greenfield, an incredibly experienced and seasoned diplomat, will be representing us at the United Nations after, I think, 35 years as a Foreign Service officer. She will bring new skill and new depth and new expertise to that particular role.
Tony Blinken, who has been nominated for Secretary of State, is someone who was deputy Secretary of State, deputy national security adviser, worked on the Hill, and has worked in the White House. A great deal of experience.
I, frankly, think most Americans are looking for a government that is run and led by people who know what they are doing in these jobs, not folks who are learning on the job.
BLITZER: How much of the president-elect's decision making is based on who he thinks can get confirmed if in fact there is a still a Republican majority in the Senate? Is that a driving factor in at least some of the selection process?
COONS: Well, Wolf, you know, to be reasonable, getting confirmation and getting confirmation relatively quickly has to be a concern for any administration. One of the challenges here is that because the transition still hasn't officially started.
The leader of the GSA still hasn't made her ascertainment, despite calls from Republicans, from both former national security leaders, the entire business community leadership and several members of the Republican majority.
She still hasn't made that determination. So it hasn't yet fully started, the opportunity for consultation between the Biden/Harris transition team and the folks who will most likely be committee chairs if the Republicans retain the majority.
That is something that has been foreshortened, but that kind of consultation that makes it more likely that nominees will be confirmed is something that I hope will go forward. I think it should be happening. It's just one part of the transition that hasn't happened yet that really should.
BLITZER: Senator Chris Coons of Delaware, thanks so much for joining us. We will continue this conversation, clearly, down the road. Appreciate it very much. Have a Happy Thanksgiving.
COONS: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Coming up, hopeful news on another potential coronavirus vaccine. New details emerging of one advantage it may have over the others.
Plus, millions of Americans traveling for Thanksgiving in the pandemic despite -- amid this pandemic despite urgent warnings from top health officials.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:25:00]
BLITZER: We are following breaking pandemic news. More than 257,000 Americans have now lost their lives to COVID-19. And new cases are sadly exploding across the United States right now. More than 12.3 million have now been confirmed. CNN's Nick Watt is in Los Angeles with the very latest.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK WATT, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That was the busiest weekend for air travel since the pandemic began. More than a million people passed through America's airports yesterday.
UNKNOWN: The one thing that I can get out of this year that will make my life a little better.
[17:29:59]
WATT (voice-over): CDC guidance is clear, don't travel over Thanksgiving, but it's just a recommendation. Not a rule.
ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: You're not going to see an increase until weeks later things lag. And then you start dealing with the Christmas holiday, we can really be in a very difficult situation.
WATT (voice-over): Still, the First Lady will host an indoor holiday party at the White House next week, while the rest of us are told not to have Thanksgiving with Grandma, because --
DR. JEROME ADAMS, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: We are at a dire point and our fight with this virus.
WATT (voice-over): This weekend was also the worst weekend for spread. Since the pandemic began more than half a million new cases in just three days. Thirteen days straight, this country has set successive records for numbers in the hospital. Some parts of New York City Hospital capacity is an issue once again.
GOV. ANDREW CUOMO (D-NY): The hospitals have contacted us and they say they need emergency beds on Staten Island.
WATT (voice-over): Nationwide, on average, more than 1,500 people are not dying from COVID-19 every single day.
DR. ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: And over the next few weeks, three to four weeks, we're going to end up hitting 2,500 maybe 3,000 deaths a day.
WATT (voice-over): In California Governor Gavin Newsom now in quarantine after his kids were potentially exposed.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So no questions?
WATT (voice-over): And from Wednesday, here in L.A., all restaurants must close even outdoors as cases sore, it's take out only again.
ADAMS: Cases, positivity, hospitalizations, death, we are seeing more Americans negatively impacted than ever before. But I also want Americans to understand that we've never had more reason for hope, thanks to the science.
WATT (voice-over): AstraZeneca has potential vaccine is according to new early data about 70 percent effective, Pfizer's and Moderna's are even higher in the 90s.
DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, EXEC ASSOC DEAN, EMORY UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE: The FDA was looking for 60 percent efficacy, and now we're over 70, 80, 90 percent efficacy. So in fact, efficacy has pretty much blown it out of the park.
WATT (voice-over): By May 70 percent of the U.S. population could be vaccinated says the White House vaccine honcho may be enough for herd immunity, if enough people trust the vaccine and take it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WATT: OK, some good news. 30,000 doses of a newly authorized antibody treatment could begin shipping at as early as tomorrow. And today, the CDC committee met to talk about who might get any vaccine first and they made a very important point. They say that the minority communities that are being disproportionately hit by this pandemic must get fair and equitable access to the vaccine that will we all hope might end this, back to you.
BLITZER: We certainly hope that. All right nick watt L.A. for us. Thank you.
Let's get some more in all of this. Dr. Peter Hotez is joining us Professor and Dean of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Hotez thanks so much for joining us. So what about this good news on the vaccine front? What are the benefits from your perspective of this AstraZeneca vaccine compared to the other two?
DR. PETER HOTEZ, PROFESSOR & DEAN OF TROPICAL MEDICINE, BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: Well, there are a few things one, Wolf, you can make a lot of it. The plans are to make 3 billion doses which far exceeds the number of doses currently under consideration for Pfizer and Moderna, so massive scale up and it's actually being made now locally in India and Brazil. So very important, along with ours to be sorted the first global health vaccines for COVID-19. I think that's very important.
Also, it does not have a freezer requirement. But the Pfizer vaccine, it's got that deep freeze minus 100 degrees Fahrenheit minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit. This can be refrigerated, and it can also be made fairly inexpensively as well. And were the manufacturers are talking about three to $4 a dose. So I think it's a great vaccine to add to our armamentarium here for operation warp speed. A little unclear what the regulatory pathway is in the U.S. since most of the data has been accumulated overseas, but I imagine those discussions are underway with the FDA.
But the bottom line is that we're now looking at three vaccines, good vaccines that will be used in the United States. I think the J&J vaccine will be a fourth, maybe Novavax, a fifth good vaccines are coming. And that's why it's so absolutely critical now, to avoid getting sick with COVID-19 during this terrible time, because we've got vaccines if we can get everybody to the other side.
BLITZER: You know, despite the CDC warnings discouraging travel during Thanksgiving, the holiday season, that's upcoming. Air travel has hit a pandemic era high , as you probably heard, what's your advice to Americans who are still considering taking the risk to travel and see family for example this week during Thanksgiving.
HOTEZ: You know, look, look, Wolf, we're heading up to 200,000 new cases a day and we know those are underestimates, the numbers probably are really something like 500,000 or 600,000 new cases per day.
[17:35:07]
And practically speaking what that means is if you're in an airport with a crowded airport or a bus station or, you know, a train station or any venue where there's lots of people, you are being surrounded by people who are infected with COVID-19. This is a horrible time in America right now to be traveling. You do not want to do this. The risk is that wherever you travel to you're going to be have either asymptomatic or symptomatic virus infection and you risk transmitting it to loved ones. Remember, we only have to hang on another few months before we'll have vaccines on the other side.
If you don't have to travel, this is not a time to do it. Try to stay within your close knit nuclear family. I know it's tough. People want to be together on Thanksgiving. They're going to want to be together on Christmas. But remember, this is unprecedented times of acceleration of a serious deadly virus infection, the likes of which we hit the United States hasn't seen in 100 years.
BLITZER: A very good advice. Dr. Peter Hotez. I hope you have a happy and safe Thanksgiving. Thanks so much for joining us.
HOTEZ: Thanks. You too, Wolf.
BLITZER: Coming up by the mayor of Atlanta Keisha Lance Bottoms is standing by live, we'll discuss her virtual meeting today with President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris, there she is, will discuss with her when we come back.
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[17:41:02]
BLITZER: President-elect Joe Biden moving forward very quickly with the transition despite President Trump's efforts to try to block it. After announcing some historic Cabinet picks today, Biden met virtually with the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
Let's go to the mayor of Atlanta Keisha Lance bottoms. Mayor Bottoms, thank you so much for joining us. You participated in this virtual meeting today with the President-elect, the Vice President-elect, what message did the incoming president convey to you and your fellow mayors from across the country?
MAYOR KEISHA LANCE BOTTOMS (D), ATLANTA, GA: Wolf, thank you as always for having me. Well, it was such a positive meeting and really inspiring for all of us. As you know, the U.S. Conference of Mayors is comprised of mayors from across this country.
It's a bipartisan organization and to have President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris speak to us about understanding the needs of our cities and understanding the need to directly assist us in understanding that this country is built from -- making sure I have his words correctly, built from the bottom up with the words that President-elect Biden repeated to us repeatedly was really what we needed to hear.
It's been a really tough year of course for Americans. It's been a tough year for mayors. And to know that there is support coming from the White House, no matter of party affiliation, was really inspiring for all of us today. BLITZER: We know there was a bipartisan group of governors from around the governor -- country, 10 governors, five Democrats, five Republicans that met virtually, with the President-elect last week. They emerged with very positive thoughts as well. But you say there were a lot of mayors across the country. Were there enough Republican mayors there as well, in addition to the democratic mayors?
BOTTOMS: Oh, absolutely. There were mayors from cities across this country represented on the call, several of us had an opportunity to ask questions, including mayors of Republican-led cities. And, again, this is the bipartisan help that we have been asking for and meeting from the White House. And what you have to know or know about mayors across the country. Our struggles are so very different right now.
Many of the mayor's on that call, the vast majority did not get direct assistance to their cities with CARES Act funding only cities with populations of 500,000 and above. We were fortunate enough in Atlanta to receive that funding. But many of these cities are still waiting for the help line to come from the federal government and to hear President-elect Biden and Vice President Harris talk about understanding the need to give us direct funding, the need for support with the challenges we're having with our unemployment rates, our infrastructure challenges that were in existence before COVID, how we will address reopenings within our communities.
It was a very thoughtful conversation that went on much longer than scheduled because it was so important to them to hear directly from us and to be able to respond to us.
BLITZER: That's so encouraging to hear that. Your city Atlanta is home to one of the world's busiest if not the world's busiest airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, which I've been to many, many times. It's expected we're told more than a million passengers during this Thanksgiving holiday week. How concerned are you, Mayor, about this sheer volume of people passing through your city during this pandemic holiday week?
BOTTOMS: Extremely concerned. We're seeing numbers of course that we have not seen since March. Delta Airlines is our hometown carrier. Thankfully they are still separating people on planes so that's very encouraging. And we are doing all that we can to make sure that people are protected as they pass through the airport. And it's also a very large job center for our state, one of the largest job centers in our state.
[17:45:16]
So in addition to making sure that our passengers are protected, all of the employees who work within the airport, we're also concerned about them. So to the extent that people can stay at home this holiday season, obviously that's been the recommendation from the CDC, but we're doing everything that we can to make sure that this passengers pass through our airport that hand sanitizer is available and we can do all that we can do to make it a pleasant and safe experience.
BLITZER: Yes. I hope everybody is wearing masks and try to best as they can a social distance. Mayor Bottoms, have a happy and safe Thanksgiving. Please be careful out there. Thanks so much for joining us.
BOTTOMS: Thank you.
BLITZER: There's more breaking news we're following. Michigan now has officially certified its election results and Pennsylvania is now expected to follow despite efforts by the President to overturn the election. Plus, President-elect Biden making historic picks as he fills his cabinet.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[17:51:12]
BLITZER: The tribunal setup to investigate what happened on October 20th in Lagos, Nigeria, has been shown close circuit video from that night. CNN has exclusively obtained the footage and much of what you're about to see corroborates our findings. Our senior international correspondent, Nima Elbagir, has our exclusive report and we want to warn our viewers some of the images may be disturbing.
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NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is government CCTV footage from surveillance cameras overlooking Lekki tollgate. Recorded without sound, it was shown as evidence in the judicial panel. You see soldiers approaching firing shots here and here.
We lined up the footage and it corroborates our previous reporting to show the first time we see and hear gunshots. Notice the building to the right of your screen. Here is the same moment from that building.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are releasing fire.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They shoot. They shoot. They shoot. They shoot. They shoot. They shoot.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are releasing fire.
ELBAGIR (voice-over): CNN geolocation and verify the footage you see to mark the exact time and place. Moments later, more CCTV footage, people alarmed. Here is the exact same moment from the other side of the gate. Shots can be heard. But the CCTV doesn't capture everything. This is what it shows at the time we believe shots are fired towards the protesters. The surveillance camera pans away. But this is what you see on the ground.
In videos obtained by CNN, it appears to show the army shooting into the crowd here and again at the top of your screen here. At the judicial panel, the CCTV footage stops at around 8 o'clock. The Lekki Concession Company says this is because it was tampered with. What it doesn't show is this crucial moment where DJ Switch livestreams on Instagram after 8:00 p.m.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everybody look at this. These are the bullets that were falling. That were falling by our side. We are dodging bullets.
ELBAGIR (voice-over): CNN has verified that these bullet casings are from live ammunition. They are of mixed origin some are Serbian, this one from 2005. Former and current Nigerian military sources verify to us that these munitions are currently in use by the Nigerian Army. At a hearing for the judicial panel of inquiry, the army made and admission.
BRIG. GEN. AHMED TAIWO, NIGERIAN ARMY: The soldiers would be given both live and blank bullets. In this particular case, we saw that this protest had been infiltrated by the hoodlums.
ELBAGIR (voice-over): But I witnesses and families we spoke to say the ammunition used that night by Nigerian authorities was very real.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is where u was shot and the bullet went through my back.
ELBAGIR (voice-over): Up until this point the army had denied they had light bullets at all on that night. It confirms a key finding in our investigation that there was live ammunition at the scene.
(on camera): This admission is the latest in a series of constantly shifting narratives as to what happened on October 20 at Lekki tollgate. The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said that the army fired blank ammunition into the air. He also dismissed CNN's investigation as fake news and misinformation.
(voice-over): Now in the aftermath of our reporting, both the United States and the United Kingdom are calling on Nigeria to ensure that its investigation is free and fair.
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[17:55:04]
ELBAGIR: The Nigerian government continues to dispute our reporting and threatened sanctions against the CNN. As you just saw, the army has only just admitted that live ammunition was carried by soldiers at Lekki tollgate on the night of October 20th.
CNN reached out multiple times to the army with requests for comment ahead of broadcasts which were unanswered and police and state authorities declined to respond. And so after the conclusion of the inquiry, we continue to stand by our reporting, Wolf.
BLITZER: Nima, excellent, excellent reporting. Thank you so much, on behalf of all of our viewers, CNN's Nima Elbagir reporting.
ELBAGIR: Thank you.
BLITZER: There's breaking news we're following. Next, President-elect Joe Biden picks former Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, to be the first woman treasury secretary. We have details of his other historic picks. That's coming up.
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