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$900 Billion COVID Relief Package Deal Reached in Congress; Nations Shut Off Travelers from U.K. Amid Fears of COVID-19 Variant; CDC Advisers Vote on Priority Groups for Next Vaccinations; Biden to Receive COVID Vaccine in Public Tomorrow; Interview with Representative Adam Schiff (D-CA) about the COVID Relief Package; Trump Turns Blind Eye to Russia Amid Cyberattack; Psychedelics May Help to Cure Depression. Aired 8-9p ET

Aired December 20, 2020 - 20:00   ET

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

[20:00:37]

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 Washington. This is a special edition of THE SITUATION ROOM.

And we begin with breaking news, breaking news that millions of Americans have been desperately waiting for. Leaders in Congress finally reaching an agreement on a $900 billion coronavirus relief package. Without it, millions of Americans would have lost benefits the day after Christmas.

Also breaking, the CDC signs off on a second coronavirus vaccine. This time from Moderna. Millions of doses rolling out on trucks this morning with the first shots expected to go into arms tomorrow morning. That welcome sight following news that already more than half a million Americans have received a dose of the first coronavirus vaccine that was approved from Pfizer. This hour, we have new details about who the CDC thinks should be next in line.

But as Americans wait to learn if they are next, we have a troubling headline coming from the U.K. A new variant of the coronavirus that's leading multiple European countries right now to cut off travel to the U.K. and from the U.K. The fear that this form of virus spreads more easily.

Let's begin with all the breaking news first on the $900 billion stimulus deal. Manu Raju is up on Capitol Hill. Jeremy Diamond is over at the White House.

Manu, the big question Americans want to know right now how much money are they going to get under this deal? Walk us through what is about to be approved.

MANU RAJU, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is a significant proposal. One of the biggest relief packages in American history is expected to be approved potentially as soon as tomorrow. This $900 billion relief plan includes more than $300 billion in small business loans, including funds that were dried up from the PPP program. A very popular small business program to small businesses to once again get money that way.

Also people can get money if they make less than $75,000 a year. Individuals will get up to $600 in a one-time direct payments. Each person in their family also would get $600. So a family of four, for instance, could get $2400.

The bill also is expected to have about $300 a week in jobless benefits, enhanced jobless benefits that are about to expire for so many Americans in just a matter of days. The benefits will be -- people will be eligible as soon as December 27th, assuming this measure becomes law.

Also, Wolf, this plan has billions more for vaccine distribution, providing to states and cities to do just that as well as money for schools and it deals with people who are struggling to pay their rent, offering rental assistance.

This measure, though, Wolf, came after months of stalemate, partisan divisions, back and forth about whether to -- what size proposal to get behind. So the fact that they're coming together on a deal here in the final days of the 116th Congress is significant.

And a key player in this has been Nancy Pelosi, the House speaker. She advanced the proposal worth more than $3 trillion through her chamber in May then came back with something around $2 trillion later in the year. Neither of which were considered by the Republican-led Senate. But she engaged in negotiations with the Treasury secretary, Steve Mnuchin. Mnuchin, at one point in October, offered a $1.8 trillion proposal at that time.

So just moments I tried to ask the speaker why she finds this proposal of $900 billion more acceptable than the $1.8 trillion plan that Mnuchin offered.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA): Thank you all very much.

RAJU: Why is this better than the Mnuchin proposal? He proposed $1.8 trillion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAJU: So I tried to ask her in the hallway, too, in the Capitol, right after that. I asked her off camera and I said, why not -- why is this more acceptable than the $1.8 trillion offer. She didn't answer but Chuck Schumer, who's walking next to her, said ask Mitch McConnell. Now what that is a reference to is the Republican senators at the time objected to what the Treasury secretary was pushing.

And -- but at the same time, the speaker herself said that what Mnuchin offered was one step forward, two steps backwards. She pushed back on that proposal. But regardless of all the back and forth in the past, Wolf, they are now coming together with something significant. $900 billion in relief. Eventually, this will become law, presuming the House and Senate can pass it as soon tomorrow, and presuming the president, who has yet to weigh in, signs it as well.

[20:05:05]

BLITZER: Yes. That's a big presumption right now.

Want to go to Jeremy Diamond at the White House. But millions and millions of Americans are in poverty right now as a result of this coronavirus pandemic. And they desperately need help. They need it immediately.

Jeremy, so what is the reaction from the White House now that Congress has reached this really important deal?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: You're right, Wolf. Case counts are worsening and also unemployment numbers have been worsening over the last several weeks in terms of the number of people asking for -- filing for jobless benefits, first-time jobless benefits. Those numbers have been on the rise in recent weeks.

So far, though, Wolf, we have no reaction from the White House. No reaction from the president, though we are of course monitoring his Twitter feed to see if anything pops up. We know that the president has wanted to see another stimulus bill passed by Congress he certainly didn't have much of a hand in these negotiations himself.

His emissaries, the Treasury secretary, Steven Mnuchin, the White House chief of staff Mark Meadows, they did spend some time on Capitol Hill. But the president, especially in the weeks since the election, he has been really hands off in terms of the hard business of governing and certainly as it relates to these negotiations on Capitol Hill. Nonetheless, you would expect that he would want to sign this.

But we know that he has been unpredictable lately as it relates to this legislation coming out of Capitol Hill. The president has threatened to veto the National Defense Authorization Bill, that's the annual Defense spending bill, because it doesn't have one PET provision that he wanted as it related to tech companies, and because it included something as it relates to renaming Confederate bases, which the president opposes.

He is still vowing to move forward with that veto threat. But this legislation we believe would be less controversial for the president. But I don't want to say anything firmly of course until we hear from the president or from the White House directly.

BLITZER: Yes. It's absolutely right. Jeremy Diamond, Manu Raju, guys, excellent reporting. Thank you very much.

There's more breaking news we're following, and it's very disturbing. Multiple European countries are shutting off travel from the U.K. amid serious fears of a new coronavirus variant that spreads more easily.

Let's go to London right now. CNN's Max Foster is on the scene for us.

So, give us the latest, Max. Update our viewers.

MAX FOSTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it feels like the whole country has been put into isolation, frankly, Wolf. So this new variant of coronavirus is up to a 70 percent more transmissible than other variants. And the health secretary said today that it's out of control, literally. It's very much focused in and around London. But it's been appearing elsewhere in the U.K. as well and other countries have been very quick to respond.

So we're seeing flights effectively banned from coming out of the U.K. into certain countries. But now we look at potential food shortages because France has put a 49-hour ban on any one, any business, any person traveling from the U.K. to France. That includes trucks. 10,000 trucks cross the English Channel every day carrying crucially fresh food. They have been told by the British government to avoid going to the port because they won't be able to get over to France.

And the retailers are now warning of food shortages, potentially at least the Food and Drink Federation saying it has a potential to cause serious disruption to U.K. Christmas fresh food supplies and exports of food and drink. The concern here is that it's not only the U.K. truckers can't travel over to France, the French truckers aren't going to want to come to the U.K. because they might get stuck here.

So this is a situation where this various, this new variant of the virus at least was discovered. And very quickly the U.K. feels like an island tonight.

BLITZER: Very disturbing information indeed. Max Foster, thank you very much. Be careful over there. We'll stay in touch.

At the same time we're learning more right now about this new variant of COVID-19, we're also finding out who could be next in line for the coronavirus vaccine here in the United States. Advisers to the CDC voted earlier today to recommend that older adults ages 75 and up as well as what are called frontline essential workers, including first responders, they would be next in line to receive COVID-19 vaccines.

Joining us now, CNN medical analyst Dr. Jonathan Reiner, professor of medicine at the George Washington University, and CNN medical analyst Dr. Megan Ranney, emergency physician at Brown University. She's also the co-founder of the GetUsPPE.org.

So let's talk a little about all this. So, Dr. Reiner, first of all, do you agree with this CDC recommendation who should be next in line?

DR. JONATHAN REINER, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Yes. Absolutely. You know, remember, Wolf, that the elderly in particular are at really greatest risk of mortality from this virus.

[20:10:04]

And, you know, folks over the age of 75 only make up about 7 percent of the population. But they comprise about 55 percent of the mortality that we've seen in this country from this virus. If you look at the folks who live in long-term care and nursing homes, 40 percent of the deaths in the United States have come in that setting. So it has to be a priority to vaccinate the elderly who have really the most to lose.

And first responders, people, you know, forward facing, public facing people, are, you know, emergency medicine people, our police, our fire, and our teachers. If you want to keep the schools open, let's vaccinate the teachers. I think it's a good plan.

BLITZER: I think you're right. Dr. Ranney, adults 75 years and older and essential workers, do you think by vaccinating them in this second group we can potentially relieve the burden on the overall health care system here in the United States?

DR. MEGAN RANNEY, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: Absolutely, Wolf. Every single vaccine that goes in the arm of an American is going to help relieve the burden on health care -- on the health care system in the United States. I can't overemphasize that enough that it really is about getting shots in arms. And every one of them helps. You know, ACIP had an almost impossible task in front of them.

There is not going to be enough vaccine out there to vaccinate all of us immediately. And they were trying to balance that risk of hospitalization and death with risk of infection. They're trying to get us back to normal. And there were two very strong trends within that discussion. One was for essential workers, frontline workers to go first. They are the people that are out there risking their lives.

And as Dr. Reiner said, it's because of the inability to keep those people safe that so much of our economy has been shut down. On the other hand, it's those older folks who are high risk for hospitalization and death who are overwhelming our health care system. This seems like the best possible balance. But the devil is in the details. Those recommendations save frontline essential workers and really leave it up to the states to decide who those people are.

We've already, Wolf, seen logistical failures in distributing vaccines just to health care workers. Look at the debacle at Stanford where the frontline residents didn't get vaccinated. So many of us are worried that, although these recommendations seem great, we're waiting to see how they're implemented by the individual states. That is where we are really going to determine whether we save our health care system or not.

BLITZER: And if you put that graphic back up there that we just showed, Dr. Reiner, the frontline essential workers, as you could see there's about 30 million Americans who are in that category. And then in the third tier, other essential workers, 57 million Americans. We're talking potentially let's say about 100 million Americans in group two and group three. It's going to take a while for the average American under 65, for example, without underlying health conditions to get vaccinated. Right?

REINER: Exactly. So just to give you an example. Last week, Pfizer shipped 2.9 -- just about 2.9 million doses. And over the last week, we inoculated about 500,000 people. So we're still learning how do this. And we're going to need innovative strategies. I saw some photos from around the country where I think at Mayo Clinic they were doing drive-thru vaccination. We're going to have really think outside the box.

We have 300 million people to inoculate. And with these first two vaccines, it's twice. So there's a long way to go. Fortunately, we're going to have about 20 million -- the ability to vaccinate about 20 million people in December, another 30 million in January and an additional 50 million people probably in February for a total of about 100 million people. So we're going to have the vaccine to do it. We just need the infrastructure to get it done.

BLITZER: Which is not going to be easy by any means. And you raised an important issue, Dr. Ranney. How do the states, you know, actually police these recommendations from the CDC? How will they stop someone from getting the vaccine who isn't in that designated group?

RANNEY: I mean, that's the million-dollar question. We're already hearing reports of people like Rupert Murdoch getting vaccinated. Certainly he's higher risk being older but he shouldn't be going ahead of health care workers. We don't know how states are going to police it yet, much less how they are going to keep track of who's gotten the first vaccine and when that person needs to show up for the second vaccine.

As you know well and as your viewers know well, we don't have a great record of doing things like distributing personal protective equipment or testing supplies on a national basis. And again we worry that this is where the vaccination program could potentially fall apart, letting people jump the line because of privilege or power, rather than because of actual risk. We know that black and Latino Americans are at higher risk of getting infected. They and other frontline workers who are out there putting themselves at risk every day to keep the rest of our economy running deserve to get this vaccine first.

[20:15:08]

I hope that states get the funding from this stimulus bill to put in place the systems that are needed so that we get the vaccines to the people who need them most.

BLITZER: Yes. I will point out, Rupert Murdoch was vaccinated in the U.K., not here in the United States. I don't know what the rules are in the U.K.

Dr. Reiner, how concerning is this new COVID variant that we're hearing about in the U.K.? Could it impact the effectiveness, for example, of the vaccine?

REINER: That's unlikely. What it does appear to be is highly transmissible. But it's important to know, we've seen several variants of this virus already, at least six other variants, important variants since the first case about a year ago. If you remember, the earliest cases probably were with the Wuhan strain which came to the West Coast. And then about a month later, a different strain probably coming out of Italy which was dubbed the G strain.

So we've seen different strains in the United States. It looks like they're all highly susceptible to the vaccine. So that does not appear to be an issue. And it also does not look like the increased transmissibility has changed the lethality of the virus. So as Dr. Jha was saying in the last hour, all the things that we know how to do we need to do -- mask up, social distance, wash your hands. And when it's your turn to get the vaccine, get the vaccine.

BLITZER: I think we're all going to be wearing masks for a big chunk of next year.

Dr. Reiner, Dr. Ranney, to both of you, thank you so much for everything you're doing. We are grateful to you both.

Right now, millions of doses of a second coronavirus vaccine are on their way around the country. We have new details about when the president-elect will be getting vaccinated. Stand by. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:21:01]

BLITZER: Tomorrow, President-elect Joe Biden is set to receive the coronavirus vaccine on camera, part of an effort to help reassure worried Americans that this vaccine is in fact safe.

CNN's Jessica Dean is in Wilmington, Delaware, for us.

So, Jessica, even though the president-elect gets his vaccine tomorrow, the vice president-elect will get hers later. Tell us why.

JESSICA DEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's exactly right, Wolf. As you said, we expect President-elect Biden to get his tomorrow. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris is scheduled to get her vaccine as well as her husband Doug Emhoff the following week. So they're staggering when they will be getting their vaccines.

Now the transition would only say they're doing this on the advice of their medical and health experts. And really wouldn't elaborate anything beyond that but it could very well possibly be because if either of them have side effects, any of the anticipated side effects from this vaccine, that they wouldn't have to endure that at the same time. So that could be what's going on.

But what we know is tomorrow the president-elect and his wife Jill Biden will get their first round of that Pfizer vaccine here in Delaware. And again, he wants to show that this is a safe vaccine. He wants to encourage all Americans to get that vaccine. And it's part of what his promise has been to Americans as well, as he wants 100 million vaccines in his first 100 days.

And of course all of this is also coming as we're getting word from Capitol Hill on the stimulus package. And Biden had talked a little bit about the stimulus package as it was coming together earlier this week. And he congratulated the bipartisan group putting it together and applauded them. But he called it a down payment, Wolf because he really wants more. He said he was glad that this was coming together. But we know that Biden and his team are going to push for much more. He really wants to see things like state and local aid in there as

well. So once he is in office, Wolf, we can expect more rounds of talks like this. But again, also for tomorrow, watch for President- elect Biden getting his vaccine -- Wolf.

BLITZER: We of course will have coverage of that. Very important. Jessica, thank you very much.

Let's bring in Sabrina Siddiqui, CNN political analyst and national politics reporter for the "Wall Street Journal."

Sabrina, the president and the White House were essentially invisible in putting this emergency economic relief package together up on Capitol Hill. What role do you see President-elect Biden, for example, playing going forward after January 20th?

SABRINA SIDDIQUI, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think he is going to play a significant role as Jessica just pointed out. President-elect Biden has been publicly calling on Congress since the election and even prior to the election to pass another coronavirus relief package. He has also endorsed the bipartisan talks that have led to this breakthrough and said that he sees this as a down payment, as Jessica said, that he will push for a much larger stimulus, not just to address the ongoing aftermath of the pandemic, but also to revitalize the U.S. economy.

Biden also had multiple conversations with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer over the course of the past few weeks as they were negotiating the details of a package. So in many ways he played a much more visible role than President Trump in his final weeks in office. And I expect that you will see these negotiations continue. And it will make the upcoming run-offs in Georgia all the more important because a lot of course in terms of what Biden will be able to get when he takes office hinges on control of the Senate.

BLITZER: You make a really important point, Sabrina, because there are some who fear that this $900 billion deal during this lame-duck session, that's going to be it. It's going to be very hard, especially if the Republicans remain the majority in the Senate following the two Georgia Senate runoff elections, it's going to be very hard for the Biden administration to get another package through. What do you think about that?

SIDDIQUI: Well, it will absolutely be I think another round of negotiations that could carry on for months if you look at the scale of what President-elect Biden has proposed.

[20:25:02]

He has called for of course more aid to local and state governments. He also has pushed for even more funding to help schools as they struggle to reopen. And, you know, Democrats are touting that they did secure another round of direct payments to the tune of $600 per adult and per child in this package for families making less than $75,000. But they wanted of course another round of $1200 stimulus checks. And I think there'll be calls from some to pursue that, in addition to

of course just broader stimulus money to revitalize the economy. So it's going to be I think difficult. But again a lot of that depends on Republicans in Congress and what the balance of the Senate looks like. Certainly Biden campaigned as a consensus builder. I think the early months of his presidency will be a real test for that pledge.

BLITZER: I think you're right. Sabrina, thank you very much. Sabrina Siddiqui helping us understand what's going on.

Lawmakers, as we have been pointing out, have reached this critically important deal on crucial coronavirus relief for millions and millions of Americans who are suffering right now. So when will they finally get some assistance and see the relief?

Congressman Adam Schiff, there you see him, he's standing by live. We have lots to discuss. We will when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:30:49]

BLITZER: Just a short time ago, after months of haggling and a weekend of intense late-night negotiations, Congress finally reached a deal on a massive $900 billion COVID relief package. But Democrats are already eyeing another round of stimulus. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PELOSI: It's a first step. And that again more needs to be done. And we're so excited that that will be happening under the Biden-Harris administration about 700 hours from now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Thirty-one days to be specific. I'm joined now by the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, Democratic Congressman Adam Schiff.

Congressman, thank you so much for joining us. As you know, a vote is expected in the House I understand tomorrow. How soon will people who are suffering right now, having trouble putting food on the table for their kids, paying rent, how soon will these folks start feeling the effects of this emergency relief package?

REP. ADAM SCHIFF (D-CA): Well, I hope as soon as possible. It may depend on what provision of the bill that they're relying upon. If they're a small business, they'll have to go through the process of applying for those PPP funds. But the extensions in unemployment assistance I hope will be implemented ASAP. Again, it may depend in part on how fast the states can turn things around.

But I'm glad that there is help on the way, that the deal is done, and we're going to go in and vote on it because so many families are hurting and struggling. And so many businesses aren't going to be around next year if they don't get the help that they need. BLITZER: Yes. I think nearly 10 million Americans over these past

months, they've lost their jobs. They are in poverty right and it's an awful situation. The economic relief that will have to be continued once Joe Biden becomes president of the United States, as I said in 31 days, what more, Congressman, would you like to see included?

SCHIFF: Well, you know, I would certainly like to see assistance to the states and the cities. Now there's help going out in this bill for the vaccination program, for more testing, and some of that will go through the states and local governments. But nonetheless, to avoid massive layoffs at the state and local level, to avoid the layoffs of police and firefighters and health care workers, we're going to need to provide them assistance.

We don't want states and cities to be going bankrupt right now. But we're going to need to do more for renters to help them pay their rent and avoid eviction. We're going to do -- need to do more I know for small businesses and we may need to extend unemployment compensation again or do more stimulus checks because, you know, sadly, the pandemic isn't going to be over on January 1st.

It's going to continue and there are going to be some harder times before there are better times, even if with these vaccinations now we finally see some light at end of the tunnel.

BLITZER: Let me ask you about these reports that there were actual discussions -- this is hard to believe -- over at White House, in the Oval Office, about possibly invoking martial law to overturn the results of this democratically held election here in the United States.

When you hear about this, what goes through your mind, Congressman?

SCHIFF: You know, it really is hard to believe. It would be unthinkable really in any other administration with any other president. But here you have, you know, Michael Cohen, someone who pled guilty twice to lying to federal agents and someone who was a very poor manager when he was the director of National Intelligence --

BLITZER: You mean -- you mean Michael Flynn?

SCHIFF: Michael Flynn. I'm sorry. Yes. Michael Flynn, when he was the director of the Intelligence -- Defense Intelligence Agency. And here he is at White House talking about, you know, whether the president can use the military essentially to bring about a coup. I mean, it's just extraordinary. And of course dangerous, destructive of our democracy to even have these kind of talks. I mean, you know, and it really -- we've been saying this all along, but this is the kind of thing you see in developing countries with tin pot dictators, not in the United States of America.

BLITZER: Yes. It's hard to believe. They actually had a discussion along these lines. Michael Flynn even said publicly in a radio interview earlier in the week that martial law might be a good idea.

[20:35:02] Let's talk about this massive hack targeting the U.S. government, some major private enterprises here in the United States. Apparently it's still ongoing. We don't know the full extent of it. But give us your sense. You've been briefed on this. What happened? What is going on? How big of a deal is this? Because yesterday, the president suggested it's being overblown by the mainstream media.

SCHIFF: Well, that's absurd for the president to make that claim. It's even more absurd and destructive for him to suggest that it wasn't the Russians, it may have been the Chinese. It was the same kind of false deflection he did four years ago about the Russian hack of the 2016 election. Basically, what the Russians did -- and they are very capable in cyberspace -- is they hacked into this program that is, you know, at the root of a lot of our infrastructure and backbone, the SolarWinds program.

They built a Trojan horse into it. And now that has infected thousands and thousands of systems of public agencies and private companies. And we don't know yet what they were able to steal in actual trade. We don't know yet what other vectors apart from SolarWinds they used to get into these systems, although we know there were other vectors. And we don't know exactly how to be confident when we purge them that they are really out of the system.

So in some of these cases, the systems are going to have to be scrapped and we're going to have to start all over. The cost will be enormous, the loss of national security information and trade secrets potentially could also be devastating. They may have also prepared the battlefield in terms of critical infrastructure to shut down power plants or hydroelectric dams or other infrastructure if push came to shove, so it will take us weeks, months or maybe even longer to understand the full scope of the harm done.

BLITZER: Very quickly before I let you go, Congressman, how certain are you that it's Russia? Because the president said it might be China. He says he's been briefed on this, it might be China. How certain are you that it's Russia?

SCHIFF: Well, I'm sure that he's been briefed, which makes what he says just a patent lie. I don't think there's any question that this was Russia. There's certainly no suggestion I have seen that it was China. That's just the president going out in the same way he came in this administration, with falsehoods every day. But these particular falsehoods by the president to protect, what, the Kremlin and Vladimir Putin, they do away with any deterrent that we would have vis-a-vis the Russians because Putin understands that the president is too weak to ever call him out.

It also means, Wolf, that should China engage in a bad act, the president who cried wolf wouldn't be believed because he has cast so many false claims like this one.

BLITZER: Congressman Schiff is the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee. Thank you so much for joining us.

SCHIFF: Thanks, Wolf. BLITZER: The president, as we've been reporting, downplaying Russia's

alleged involvement in a massive cyberattack. Now one Republican senator is sounding off. You're going to hear from him when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[20:42:19]

BLITZER: When it comes to the massive cyberattack on the U.S. government and several Fortune 500 companies, the consensus in Washington is that Russia was behind it. But President Trump is downplaying Moscow's possible role. Instead he claims China may be responsible. Here is Senator Mitt Romney, a Republican, trying to make some sense of it earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. MITT ROMNEY (R-UT): Well, the president has a blind spot when it comes to Russia. And so you can expect that that's the response that he would have. The thousands upon thousands who work at the Department of Defense and the intelligence unit, the CIA, the National Security Administration and others who've looked at this said well, there's no question this comes from Russia.

They've done this sort of thing before. They've done it again. And what it underscores is Russia acts with impunity with regard to these cyberattacks because they don't think we have the capacity to respond in like measure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Let's bring in our CNN national security analyst Samantha Vinograd.

Samantha, do you agree that the president has a blind spot when it comes to Russia?

SAMANTHA VINOGRAD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Wolf, President Trump has arguably been moonlighting as Putin's publicist for four years and counting, whether it's Putin attacking our elections, hacking into our power grids, assassinating or trying to assassinate people in third countries, invading Ukraine, and so much more.

President Trump has failed to personally call out and to personally punish Putin. Instead, he has deflected and shifted blame onto other actors and downplayed the significance of Russian attacks. Thankfully, we'll soon have a president who isn't scared of Putin. Biden is not going to be timid in the face of an adversary like Vladimir Putin.

And so while President Trump had given Putin a lifelong get-out-of- jail-free card, Putin and other adversaries know that we will soon have a president who won't be afraid to impose consequences for attacks in the homeland.

BLITZER: You've warned, Sam, that adversaries would try to take advantage of this transition period. How is President Trump's behavior impacting that? Has he made the U.S. more vulnerable right now?

VINOGRAD: This year, 2020, has been a particularly vulnerable period for the United States. We of course have a president who's been obsessed with his personal and political ambitions. We have an atrophied national security apparatus. And then this year we piled on the COVID-19 pandemic, the election cycle and the transition process which introduced real historic strains on national security resources, namely time, attention and assets.

This all proved fertile ground for maligned actors to manipulate. President Trump's ongoing attacks on our national security and in referencing his spreading of disinformation, his nods to refusing to leave office and more only make our adversaries feel more empowered.

[20:45:08]

The only good news, and I hate to keep going back to this, Wolf, is everybody is on notice that there will be a sea change come January 20th.

BLITZER: Samantha Vinograd, thank you as usual for joining us. We're going to have more news right after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: There's more breaking news coming to THE SITUATION ROOM. A major development in the story we told you about earlier. Canada has now decided it will ban all passenger air traffic from the U.K.

[20:50:02]

Of course this comes as other nations are cutting off transportation links to the U.K. over fears tied to the discovery of a new variant of COVID-19 which is said by officials to spread faster than others. The ban begins midnight tonight, will last at least 72 hours.

The Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau says this is being done to keep Canadians safe. We'll see what the United States does. We're waiting for that. We're going to stay on top of this story for you.

Meanwhile, the growing epidemic of mental illness and the legalization of medical marijuana are opening the door to the possible use of other illegal substances for medicinal purposes. Tonight, on "THIS IS LIFE," Lisa Ling explores how psychedelics might hold the key to a healthier future for at least some people. Here is a preview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LISA LING, CNN HOST, "THIS IS LIFE": Allen began to crumble under the emotional weight of his diagnosis.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They've tried a minimum of 16 different antidepressants on me and none of them worked. At least half of them, I had the exact opposite effect.

LING: But worst of all were the nightmares. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The only way I know to describe this is someone is

holding me underwater and I can't get my breath. Panic. Pure, extreme terror. And you don't go back to sleep after something like that. So that's when they've diagnosed me that you definitely have PTSD.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BLITZER: Wow. "THIS IS LIFE" host Lisa Ling is joining us now.

So, Lisa, what are psychedelics? And how are they being used in medical therapy?

LING: Well, Wolf, thanks for having me on. So psychedelics are substances that are found in nature or made synthetically in a lab. And they seem to bring the unconscious more to the surface. And they promote new neuro connections, new pathways that are said to actually rewire the brain. Some includes suicide, and you saw the gentleman in the clip who is growing his own mushrooms, and he takes one microdose, a capsule, every three to four days.

I mean, you and I probably know a lot of people who take multiple pills every single day to treat their depression. We also in our episode feature people who are in a clinical trial for MDMA as well as ketamine, which currently is the only psychedelic that is legal in the United States.

BLITZER: So what is the psychedelic experience like for these people who use it as a therapeutic, Lisa? What do they see, think and feel?

LING: Well, Wolf, the experience is really different for everyone. But I'm told that psychedelic therapy is a less painful way to access and even confront trauma that may be lingering in the brain and consciousness. Some people say that they are transported to different dimensions. Some are taken back to when they experienced trauma in their past. And in some ways, people say that psychedelics sort of hold the hands of people and help them almost reframe the narrative in their brains without the fear that usually accompanies trauma.

BLITZER: Do these psychedelics work, Lisa? Do they help people move beyond their anxiety or their depression, PTSD?

LING: Well, I want to remind people that our episode is about the clinical benefits of psychedelics. And this is not an episode about the recreational use. And I have met numerous people, Wolf, who say that they have been taking, you know, prescription pills for years and years, and for the first time some of them have reported to me that they feel cured of things like PTSD. Someone even told me that if it weren't for psychedelics, she wouldn't be here right now.

BLITZER: Really interesting stuff.

Lisa, thank you so much for doing this. This is really important.

And to our viewers, an all-new episode of "THIS IS LIFE" airs later tonight 10:00 p.m. Eastern right here on CNN. We'll be right back.

[20:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BLITZER: That does it for me tonight. I'll be back in THE SITUATION ROOM tomorrow starting at 5:00 p.m. Eastern. The CNN Special Report "PANDEMIC, HOW A VIRUS CHANGED THE WORLD IN 1918," that's coming up next.

Before we go, we want to pay tribute to some victims of the coronavirus pandemic. Benny Napoleon was the sheriff of Wayne County, in Michigan, and a former Detroit police chief. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer says Sheriff Napoleon's quick laugh, eager partnership and candid counsel is what she will miss most.

He died Thursday at the age of 65. Among other family members, he's survived by his 84-year-old mother Betty.

Valerie Louie was a single mom, a nurse who worked for 32 years at Highland Hospital in Oakland, California. But she was also known for her love of dogs. Her friends say she rescued thousands of them, finding them loving homes. Valerie died November 25th at the age of 60. She is survived by her 21-year-old son Andrew who is studying to be a nurse like his mom.

May they rest in peace --

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