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The Situation Room

Republicans Petition Supreme Court to Overturn Election; Interview with Thomas Friedman; FDA Approves Pfizer Vaccine; Battleground States Issue Blistering Rebukes to Texas Lawsuit to Invalidate Millions of Votes; Biden on Vaccine Recommendation, a Bright Light in a Needlessly Dark Time; FDA Panel Recommends Authorization of Pfizer COVID-19 Vaccine; Congress Fails to Act As Millions of Americans Suffer. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired December 10, 2020 - 18:00   ET

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

[18:00:00]

WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Nick, 17 FDA advisers voted to recommend the authorization of this vaccine. Four voted no. One abstained. Update our viewers on the very latest developments.

NICK WATT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, important to note that there were four no's and the abstention.

But the only real disagreement on this on this committee call was over whether 16- and 17-year-olds should be getting this vaccine or not. And that's really just because there's not much data relating to that age group.

Now, this is the best news that's come out of my mouth all year. Vaccines could start going into arms Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WATT (voice-over): History was just made in little boxes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And that concludes the vote. So, we do have a favorable vote.

WATT: The FDA advisory committee just voted to recommend a green light for Pfizer's vaccine.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the safety is -- it's pretty well demonstrated. And balance that again over 2,000 deaths a day or 2,500 deaths a day, I'm comfortable.

DR. STEPHEN HAHN, FDA COMMISSIONER: Our plan is to take their recommendations into account for our decision-making and make a decision shortly thereafter. Again, it really depends upon the complexity of the issues discussed. But we intend to act quickly.

WATT: Needles and syringes already on the move, nearly three million vaccine doses ready to be deployed within hours to states. But...

DR. CARLOS DEL RIO, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: I'm really, really just fearing what's going to happen over the next several weeks. Hospitals are overwhelmed. People are tired. And, quite frankly, people are dying.

WATT: Yesterday in America, 3,124 people were reported killed by COVID-19, the highest daily toll of the pandemic, more lives lost than 9/11. Get used to it. The CDC forecasts another 70,000 or so Americans could die from now through New Year's Day. That's an average of over 3,000 people every day.

ICUs at one in three hospitals were over 90 percent full last week. Reno, Nevada, this wasn't a hospital. It was the parking garage, now filled with beds and patients.

ROSALIA MARTINEZ, COVID-19 PATIENT: He coughs at nighttime. I can hear him. And if I yell, he can hear me. He knows that I'm still alive.

WATT: The worst days, months could still be to come. So, Bill Nye, The Science Guy, is on TikTok explaining why masks really do work.

BILL NYE, THE SCIENCE GUY: Viruses don't travel by themselves. No, they travel in droplets of spit and snot. And the fibers are a tangle.

WATT: And those who know best are Grinching Christmas.

DR. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM, DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA CENTER FOR INFECTIOUS DISEASE RESEARCH: No Christmas parties. There is not a safe Christmas party in this country right now. I don't think we're going to see really a sizable amount of vaccine for the American public well into March and April.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATT: So, what happens next?

Well, the FDA commissioner has got to sign off on that advisory panel's recommendation. And, also, a CDC panel has to take a vote. That looks like it's going to happen Sunday. We are not anticipating, Wolf, any more roadblocks in this process -- back to you.

BLITZER: All right, Nick, thank you very much.

I want to talk to three members of the FDA advisory committee that just voted on this Pfizer vaccine, Dr. Ofer Levy, Dr. Paul Offit, and Dr. James Hildreth. They're all joining us now.

Dr. Levy, let me start with you.

First of all, how did you vote? And tell us why.

DR. OFER LEVY, FDA VACCINES ADVISORY COMMITTEE: Thank you, Wolf.

And I would just like to wish you a healthy Hanukkah holiday to you and all the viewers who mark that holiday. It's the Festival of Lights. And we are hoping we now have light at the end of the tunnel.

I voted yes, based on the safety and efficacy data presented by the sponsor to FDA. We reviewed it carefully. FDA did an independent analysis. The safety largely indicated only mild or moderate adverse events, typical ones after a vaccine, you know, soreness in the arm, maybe some fever, et cetera. And the efficacy looked very, very good. And, on that basis, I voted yes.

BLITZER: All right, Dr. James Hildreth is with us as well. He is a member of this advisory panel.

Dr. Hildreth, how did you vote? And tell us why.

DR. JAMES HILDRETH, PRESIDENT AND CEO, MEHARRY MEDICAL COLLEGE: Wolf, I voted yes to issue the EUA.

I think the data was pretty compelling that the benefits greatly outweighed the risks. I wish there could have been slightly more enrollment of minorities in the trial. But I think the numbers were sufficient to make a decision.

[18:05:00]

I also think that, based on use of mRNA technology in other kinds of medical applications, I feel comfortable that the technology itself does not pose any real risk.

So, I just feel that we need this vaccine and the risks outweigh the -- the benefits outweigh the risks, so I voted yes.

BLITZER: OK.

What about Dr. Offit?

How did you vote? And tell us why, please.

DR. PAUL OFFIT, CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: So, I voted yes because we know that this vaccine is highly effective for at least three months after you get the -- your first dose, meaning 95 percent effect at protecting against COVID-19.

We know that at least in tens of thousands of people followed for two months, that it doesn't have any serious, adverse event. So, it doesn't have any uncommon serious adverse event.

And the question is never, when do you know everything? It's, when do you know enough? And I think we know enough now to say that this appears to be our way out of this awful, awful mess. So, that's why I voted yes.

BLITZER: So, walk us through, Dr. Levy, what happens next, because a lot of Americans, as you well know, millions and millions, they are anxious to start getting these shots. Walk us through what is going to happen now that your panel has recommended emergency use authorization for this vaccine.

LEVY: Thank you, Wolf.

So, that's the key word. We recommended it, right? So, we recommended it to FDA. FDA will make that final determination, my understanding that that will be in a matter of days. Could be tomorrow. I don't know their exact timing, but we're talking days, not weeks.

And then, after that, I believe vaccines could start shipping. There is also a step from the CDC that needs to occur. And, as you know, Wolf, each state has started to define priority populations, such as health care workers, elderly individuals in long-term care facilities, et cetera, as priority populations to receive this vaccine.

BLITZER: It's really important. It goes now to the full FDA. Then it goes to the CDC.

Our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Doctors, is with us as well. And I know he's got some questions for you as well.

Sanjay, go ahead.

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, congratulations on being part of such a historic day and a historic vote. I mean, the world is paying attention right now, obviously.

I'm curious.

And maybe I will ask you, Dr. Offit. I was following along. There are specific subgroups, such as pregnant women or women of child-bearing age, and also people who have had previous allergic reactions to vaccines. What are the specific recommendations going to be for those people?

OFFIT: Well, I think the recommendation will be that pregnant women do not receive this vaccine until we know more.

The -- however, as was shown in this trial, whenever you do any sort of large, clinical trial, invariably, you do include pregnant women, because women don't find out they're pregnant until after they have gotten one or two doses. So, there were about two dozen women in this trial that were pregnant.

There doesn't appear to be any harmful effects on them. Their babies haven't been born yet, so to find out. This will also happen when the vaccine rolls out into health care workers and people who live and work in long-term -- specifically those who work in long-term health facilities. They, too, this will -- this will include pregnant people as well.

And I'm sorry, Sanjay, the second part of your question was?

GUPTA: The allergic reactions.

OFFIT: Allergic reactions, right.

So, there were, apparently, three, actually, cases of allergic reactions now following this vaccine. And both the U.K., as well as Dr. Slaoui of Warp Speed, have sort of warned against people who have severe allergic reactions getting this vaccine. But I do think we need to define that better. I think we need to

define what about those three people caused them to have a severe allergic reaction to see whether it was or was not a specific component of that vaccine, because there are tens of millions of people in this country in the U.S. who carry EpiPens because they are allergic to peanuts or allergic to eggs.

And I don't think those people would likely have a problem with this vaccine, but I think we need to study them at some point.

GUPTA: Let me ask one more question I think is important.

And that is that we, obviously, have a much greater demand than supply of the vaccine. Originally, my understanding was the FDA would have accepted 50 percent efficacy of this vaccine. We seem to have data, when I was reading it -- correct me if I'm wrong -- after the first dose, there is a significant amount of difficult, over 50 percent efficacy.

Was there any consideration to saying, hey, let's just give all the doses out at once, so we can at least immunize a larger percentage of the population, even if it's at lower overall effectiveness?

OFFIT: No. And the reason was is that, obviously, everybody -- you started to see a trend, where the -- those who got that first dose clearly were benefiting. But then, they got a second dose.

So, I think, until we know more about sort of how long the efficacy lasts or how good it is, I wouldn't do that.

First of all, it would mean you give 40 million doses now to 40 million people, in the hopes that you could get another 40 million doses in three weeks, which may well not happen. I think that, programmatically, that's not going to play out that way. And we didn't talk about that, no.

[18:10:01]

BLITZER: Yes, let me bring Dr. Hildreth back into this conversation.

Dr. Hildreth, as you know, there is a lot of hesitancy among African Americans specifically, other minority groups, to get this vaccine. They are worried, given the history of vaccines here in the United States, what has happened.

How do you, how do we, all of us, convince our African American brothers and sisters this is a safe and effective vaccine, get the shot?

HILDRETH: So, Wolf, I think the good news is that the vaccine proved to be efficacious in African Americans as it was in whites.

The numbers could have been a lot higher. But I think they're adequate to make that conclusion. I think that what we have to do now is to make sure that we have trusted messengers who get well-informed about the vaccine and the safety profile and exactly what it is that we are going to be trying to achieve.

And I think, if we do that, and provide enough information for people to make informed choices, they will make the choice to accept the vaccine, because, of course, African-Americans need the vaccine more than other populations, given the disproportionate burden of disease that we have had to bear with this virus.

So, that would be my strategy going forward.

BLITZER: Yes, we just got to have a public relations campaign to convince the American public that this is safe and effective.

I know you doctors agree this is a safe and effective vaccine. Hopefully, the Moderna vaccine will be safe and effective. We're hoping the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine maybe in January February, that will be considered by the FDA, maybe the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. We need a lot of vaccines right now.

Dr. Levy, I just want to clarify. If you use an EpiPen, if you are allergic to, let's say, peanuts or eggs, is it safe to get this vaccine?

LEVY: So, that's the topic that's being analyzed now by FDA.

They are obviously aware of the reports from the U.K. I believe they have understandings in place with their counterparts in the U.K., and are poring over medical records to carefully understand what exactly happened there, who were the individuals that were affected there by this anaphylaxis, or acute reaction, allergic reaction, apparently, to the vaccine.

And they're -- they will then take that information and incorporate it into some sort of guidance. With a vaccine, there is a package insert that will state that certain individuals should not receive the vaccine.

And exactly how they will define that remains to be seen. They are thinking about how to word that, and it will depend on their analysis of these few cases that Dr. Offit just mentioned to you.

BLITZER: Well, I just want to be precise, Dr. Levy. Who should not get this vaccine? Children under 16? Pregnant women? Who specifically are you saying, don't get this vaccine?

LEVY: Right.

Well, so, it will -- the emergency use authorization, as we recommended it -- again, FDA will make their final determination. But, in terms of what we voted on, was 16 years of age and up should get it, unless they have some contraindication, some reason they shouldn't get it.

And, right now, the only contraindication might be known allergy to the vaccine components. Now, obviously, most people -- nobody's ever seen a vaccine like that before, so they wouldn't know. But there might be some guidance in there that, if somebody has a history of allergies, carries an EpiPen, and has ever had an anaphylactoid reaction to something else, they may -- FDA decide to put a black box warning in the package insert around that.

And we await the final determination by FDA how they will define that.

BLITZER: Sanjay, give some perspective right now.

This is a really encouraging moment in the history of this pandemic, which has been so awful over this entire year going back to January. And it continues to get worse by the day right now, sadly.

But give us some perspective on what we are experiencing right now, as this vaccine looks like it's going to be approved.

GUPTA: I mean, Wolf, I didn't think we would be having this conversation this year.

And it's interesting. I interviewed Dr. Offit for our podcast.

I think, Dr. Offit, then you were reminding that you worked on vaccines that can take a quarter-century, if they get developed and authorized or approved at all. So, this is really -- it's remarkable. And I think, just as a reporter sort of having reported on this for so long, it is a day that's really worth celebrating, for sure.

But it also comes on the same day that we have had, tragically, the highest number of people who have died of this disease as well, so many people in the hospital. Obviously, we are seeing the surge now of Thanksgiving, in terms of newly diagnosed patients.

So, it's tough, Wolf. It's whiplash, I think, a lit bit. I want to contextualize that better for people and celebrate this, but also say keep the pedal to the metal on what I think are more surgical and very fast-acting strategies, such as masks.

Vaccines are great. They're a really powerful sort of tool, but it's going to take a while, as we all know, to see the impact of that. Wear a mask now, and greatly stop transmission, reduce transmission at least.

[18:15:08]

And that will have a much greater impact. I know it's hard. We're a society of home runs and touchdowns and knockouts. That's what we want. And, sometimes, we don't lean into the public health measures nearly enough.

Science is fantastic, but it can't rescue us from ourselves if we don't adopt these healthy behaviors.

BLITZER: You are absolutely right. And it's been going on all year. There are record numbers of cases right now, hospitalizations. Just yesterday, according to the Johns Hopkins University, 3,124 Americans were reported dead as a result of this coronavirus.

These numbers are exploding, even as we have this historic news about a possible breakthrough on getting vaccines to millions of Americans in the coming days.

And we are going to stay on top of the breaking news.

Doctors don't go too far away. We are going to continue our special coverage.

There is also other breaking news we're following, including a new Republican show of support for the president's far-fetched attempts to try to undo the will of the American voters.

"The New York Times" columnist and author Thomas Friedman -- there you see him -- he is standing by. We will discuss.

We're staying on top of all the breaking news right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:20:35]

BLITZER: We're back with the breaking news.

And an FDA advisory committee just voted moments ago to recommend emergency use authorization of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.

We are following that huge, huge, historic moment in this battle against the coronavirus pandemic.

Also breaking right now, more than 100 of President Trump's Republican allies in the House of Representatives have joined him in supporting a totally baseless Texas lawsuit aiming to throw out millions of votes in four key battleground states.

Hard to believe this is going on right now here in the United States of America.

Let's go to our chief White House correspondent, Jim Acosta.

Jim, dozens of Republicans, they're closing ranks behind the president and his bogus claims. This is a really hard moment to even discern.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: It really is, Wolf. And the president is not alone, on this.

Now, it's important to emphasize President Trump met with Republican attorneys general at the White House earlier today as he continues to try to subvert American democracy and overturn the election results.

And the president, as you said, is being backed by more than 100 House Republicans who are now supporting a lawsuit filed by the state of Texas seeking to throw out millions of votes in key battleground states won by Joe Biden.

But even some of Mr. Trump's fellow Republicans in Texas see this lawsuit as all hat and no cattle. And as one White House adviser told me, it is -- quote -- "pretty crazy" that the president is even taking part in the case.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA (voice-over): Surfacing a White House holiday party, the president made it clear he wants the Supreme Court to gift-wrap the election forum by siding with a group of pro-Trump state attorneys general out to overturn the will of the people.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Certain very important people, if they have wisdom and if they have courage, we're going to win this election.

ACOSTA: Filing the lawsuit with the support of 18 Republican-led states, Texas GOP Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is under federal indictment and accused by Democrats of seeking a presidential pardon, wants the Supreme Court to consider the case before the Electoral College finalizes Joe Biden's victory next Monday.

KEN PAXTON (R), TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL: It's a state-on-state action. The only place we can go is the U.S. Supreme Court.

ACOSTA: Pinning his hopes on the Texas case, the president is still scamming his supporters on social media, falsely tweeting: "How can you give an election to someone who lost the election by hundreds of thousands of legal votes in each of the swing states? How can a country be run by an illegitimate president?"

Texas Senator Ted Cruz says he is willing to argue on behalf of the president before the Supreme Court.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): I think we need a sense of resolution, and we need the Supreme Court to step in and ensure that we're following the Constitution and following the law.

ACOSTA: The same Cruz Mr. Trump repeatedly called a liar back in 2016.

TRUMP: Lying Ted Cruz. You know, he walks in, the Bible held high, right, the Bible held high. He puts it down, comes over here, starts ranting and raving, and he starts lying.

ACOSTA: But other Texas Republicans are throwing cold water on the case, from Senator John Cornyn, who said, "I frankly struggle to understand the legal theory of it," to Congresswoman Kay Granger, who said: "I don't think it's going to go anywhere."

"The Atlanta Journal-Constitution" reported the president warned Georgia's attorney general against rallying opposition to the case, after he said it was constitutionally, legally and factually wrong.

Georgia Republicans are facing the wrath of Trump supporters threatening to boycott the state's upcoming Senate run-off election.

QUESTION: Some folks are saying they're not going to show up.

LUCRETIA HUGHES, TRUMP SUPPORTER: I understand them, because we're pissed. Give the Republican people and the base a reason to get off our tails and go vote for you because if you don't stop this fraud of an election, you don't have our backs, so why are we having yours?

ACOSTA: The president's personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, says he is ready to return to Mr. Trump's election crusade after a bout with the coronavirus. Giuliani told WABC Radio received top-notch treatment because he is a Trump VIP.

RUDY GIULIANI, ATTORNEY FOR PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Sometimes, when you're -- you know, you're a celebrity, they're worried, if something happens to you, they're going to examine it more carefully, and do everything right.

ACOSTA: The president is fixated on the election, as the pandemic is raging out of control, claiming more than 3,000 lives Wednesday, with the administration predicting there could be some 362,000 deaths by January, a reminder of all the times Mr. Trump downplayed the virus.

(on camera): What do you say to Americans who believe that you got this wrong?

TRUMP: And I do want them to stay calm, and we are doing a great job.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[18:25:01]

ACOSTA: As for that Texas lawsuit, the Pennsylvania attorney general's filed a blistering response in that case.

In that filing, the Pennsylvania attorney general accuses Texas of -- quote -- "seditious abuses" in the lawsuit.

Wolf, it sounds like a war between the states. But at least it's a war of words right now -- Wolf.

BLITZER: All right, Jim Acosta, reporting from the White House, thanks very much.

Let's discuss with Thomas Friedman, "The New York Times" foreign affairs columnist and best-selling author, whose books include "Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations."

Tom, thanks so much for joining us.

So, you just heard Jim's report that -- hard to believe -- more than 100 House Republicans are actually signing on in support of this totally baseless lawsuit that they are sending over to the U.S. Supreme Court.

What does this show, the show of support for those outlandish claims, tell you about the state -- and it's hard for me to even say this in a question here -- about the state of our own democracy in the United States of America?

THOMAS FRIEDMAN, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Well, Wolf, what you are seeing today is that these Republican lawmakers aren't just tolerating Trump. They have become Trump.

They aren't just cowering from Trump. They are becoming Trump. And by becoming Trump, what does that mean? It means that they are putting party before country, and going to war against our democracy, against the core of our democracy, free and fair elections.

You know, Wolf, you and I both worked overseas. In the worst banana republic, I'm not sure they'd try this. If this were going on in any other democracy around the world, or India or Poland or Indonesia, this would be like front-page news. We'd be saying, can you believe this?

But this is going on here. And what it tells you is this party is simply not fit to rule, is not fit to govern. It makes the outcome in Georgia so much more important. It makes it so much more important that they lose control of the Senate, that they lose control of the White House.

And if this were kindergarten, they would have a time-out. This party needs to go sit in the corner and reflect on who they are and what they have become, because they have become a cancer on our democracy.

BLITZER: Yes, it's so, so true because all 50 states, Tom, have now officially certified the results from their states. And those results show, in the national popular vote, Biden won by more than seven million votes.

And as far as the all-important Electoral College is concerned, 306 electoral votes for Biden. 232 for Trump. You need 270, a clear-cut, a clear-cut, very decisive win, yet the president of the United States, these Republican attorneys general, these Republicans, members of the House, they want to throw that away.

FRIEDMAN: Yes, I mean, we have really -- the divide isn't left/right anymore. It's fact-based and science-fiction-based in the country, basically. There's not much we can do about that, except maybe celebrate a little bit tonight, Wolf, too.

And let's talk about the part of the glass that's half-full, the fact that all 50 states, red and blue, as it were, conducted free and fair elections. And some had Republican secretary of states and some had Democratic ones.

The fact that judges -- I think the score is something like 68-1 -- ruled against Trump in all these bogus lawsuits across the country, Trump-appointed judges. So, the federal judiciary really held. And, of course, the Supreme Court, with a pro-Trump-seeming majority, swatted the whole thing away.

So, the good news is that, in this case, Wolf, the system held. But what if it had been really close? What if it had been closer, and they pulled this off and they succeeded? Wolf, we'd be at -- we'd be in a civil war right now. People would be taking to the streets, because a party would be denying millions and millions of legally cast votes.

We have come so close. I mean, Lady liberty, Wolf, she was just crossing the intersection. And this bus driven by this crazy man, with all these people in the back applauding him, just missed her.

We are so lucky. But we have to remember, these people, this party, the people doing this, they are not fit to govern.

BLITZER: It's hard to believe what's going on.

As you know, Tom, the House majority whip, James Clyburn, joined me here in THE SITUATION ROOM earlier this week. I asked him about these Republican efforts to deny the results of the election. He said -- and I am quoting him -- "This kind of a threat could very well," in his words, "destroy the fabric that has been holding this country together for so many years."

Do you share his concern?

FRIEDMAN: Yes, you know, Wolf, if -- blessedly, we have got this wonderful news from the FDA on the vaccine, which you have talked about.

But I -- and that deserves top billing on your show and top billing in "The New York Times," of course.

But, beyond that, I wish we'd turn the whole front page of our newspaper.

[18:30:02]

All of, you know, your news tonight, to this, to calling these people out, to shaming them, not that they have any shame, this is so important. This is so dangerous. You don't play with democracy. You can drop it. You can break it. And if you do, it's gone.

The level of cynicism here by Ted Cruz, by Mitch McConnell, by this complete knuckle-head attorney general from Texas, the level of cynicism, the willingness to put their personal interests and their party's interest. And what is it about? Can't you get a job anywhere else? Is it worth sacrificing everything for this? I mean, seriously, just for free parking at national airport. What the hell is wrong with you people? Do you go home at night to a different country where you can bash our democracy and it's not going to matter for you or your kids? What is wrong with you people?

BLITZER: You know, they even want to invalidate the votes in the state of Georgia right now where Biden clearly won. They want to invalidate those votes, even though the governor of Georgia is a Republican, the lieutenant governor of Georgia is a Republican, the secretary of state of Georgia is a Republican, the attorney general of Georgia is a Republican, the individual in charge of counting votes is a Republican. They are saying, throw these millions of votes out. Don't believe what's going on in Georgia.

These are not Democrat leaders. These are Republican leaders in Georgia. Yet, 100-plus members -- Republican members of the House, 18 or 19 Republican attorneys general and the president of the United States say, don't believe the Republican leadership of Georgia. FRIEDMAN: Well, all we can hope for, you know, Wolf, really going forward is that once Trump actually does cede power, he's going to have to cede power, that the party will fracture. It would be the greatest blessing in the world if that party fractured between a lunatic pro-Trump faction and principled conservatives.

And, you know, we cannot have a healthy democracy without a principled conservative party. You cannot hold a two-party democracy. Right now, we have unprincipled, deeply sick conservative party.

So, my hope is after Trump finally has to loosen his grip, even if, you know, we have to pry his hands off of it, it's going to happen on January 20th. And then, hopefully, ideally, that party will fracture and have a deep rethink and come back, at least part of it, as a healthy conservative party. We desperately need that, a healthy, conservative party, that can cooperate and collaborate with a Joe Biden Administration.

BLITZER: And to their credit, there are healthy conservative Republicans who agree with us that this is a bogus, bogus claim. Tom Friedman, thank you so much for joining us.

FRIEDMAN: Pleasure, Wolf. Thank you. Happy Hanukkah.

BLITZER: Happy Hanukkah to you as well. Thank you.

We are going to go live to a Pfizer facility for an update on how quickly the first doses of vaccine will actually be shipped. And this is breaking news, we're following, very historic, breaking news.

We'll also have the latest on the Biden transition, new developments unfolding today, as the president-elect of the United States turns to more Obama-era officials for senior positions.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:35:00]

BLITZER: We're getting reaction from President-elect Joe Biden to the recommendation for emergency use authorization for the new Pfizer coronavirus vaccine. Major, breaking news we're following, a historic moment in this battle against the coronavirus pandemic.

I want to go to our Political Correspondent, Arlette Saenz, joining us from Wilmington, Delaware. So, Arlette, what are you hearing? What's the latest?

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, President- elect Joe Biden is welcoming this recommendation from the FDA regarding the coronavirus vaccine. He released a statement just a short while ago. I want to read to you a portion of what the president-elect had to say.

He called it a bright light in a needlessly dark time. Adding, we are grateful to the scientists and researchers who developed this vaccine. And we are grateful to the scientists and public-health experts who evaluated the safety and efficacy of this vaccine free of political influence. The integrity of science led us to this point.

And Biden went on to talk about how just because a vaccine is nearing approval, that does not mean that vaccinations are going to start right away. And he talked about the importance of making a plan to distribute this vaccine. And he called on the Trump administration to purchase and acquire the doses of this vaccine that they have agreed to and also talked about the need for Congress to fund the distribution of this vaccine widely.

Now, Biden, as he is preparing to take office, has been trying to work on these plans regarding a vaccine distribution. Just last week, he said that he had not seen a detailed plan from the Trump administration about how this vaccine would actually get into people's arms. So, that is something that the Biden team is starting to work through as they are nearing the time when he will take office in the white house.

And the Biden's team, the transition team, has been meeting with Operation Warp Speed. They had a meeting today. They will have another meeting tomorrow, as they are trying to work out these plans for distributing this vaccine once it is formally approved by the FDA.

[18:40:08]

Wolf?

BLITZER: It could be a logistical challenge but it's critically, critically important. Arlette, thank you very much. Let's go to a Pfizer facility right now in Michigan that will be distributing this new COVID-19 vaccine. CNN's Pete Muntean is on the scene for us.

Pete, so how quickly will we start seeing this vaccine roll out from those huge buildings behind you?

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Pfizer says trucks carrying the vaccine, Wolf, could begin leaving here within 24 hours of that final approval from the FDA. This spot is so critical to the vaccine distribution.

This is Pfizer's Kalamazoo facility, its largest facility, a sprawling facility, 1,300 acres. We know that vaccine arrived here late last month. But Operation Warp Speed, the federal government, saying vaccine will be leaving here going to 600 individual facilities. Those are places like hospitals, pharmacies, Walgreens, CVS.

It will be UPS and FedEx carrying the packages, which will have a thermal monitor on them, broadcasting the temperature that is so critical to this vaccine transportation back to UPS headquarters. We know the Pfizer vaccine needs to be negative 100 degrees Fahrenheit.

Wolf, not a lot of activity here just yet but we know this will be a massive effort and it all starts here in Michigan.

BLITZER: We will watch it unfold together with you. Pete Muntean on the scene for us in Kalamazoo, Michigan, thank you very much. Let's get some analysis right now from Dr. Peter Hotez, the Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine. Dr. Hotez, thank you so much for joining us. And let me get your reaction.

Based on the recommendation we just got from this FDA-advisory committee, when do you expect the first shots to actually go into millions and millions of Americans' arms? What sort of logistical challenges will the states face as we see this unfold?

DR. PETER HOTEZ, DEAN, NATIONAL SCHOOL OF TROPICAL MEDICINE AT BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE: Yes, Wolf. I'm hoping that by next week, we could start seeing some of the first people injected with this vaccine. I think the FDA now will listen to the comments of VERPAC. They still have a couple issues, internal issues to sort out and, hopefully, we'll approve this emergency use authorization very soon. It's a very exciting time.

You know, Wolf, I was listening to the earlier commentaries from the VERPAC review committee that did such a great job. And, you know, my first thought was, you know, that when America is facing some of its darkest times, it always referred -- it goes -- America always refers to the scientists to help them through some of our most difficult problems.

So, it was science that really helped us win World War II. The American G.I.s, of course, but some of the scientific inventions gave us that edge to defeat Nazism in World War II. We relied on the scientists to help us win the cold war and the space race. We relied on the scientists to defeat AIDS. And, you know what, we're going to rely on scientists now to defeat COVID-19.

And along those lines, I'd like to point out that this is not just some flash in the pan over a few months. This was very deliberate by the leadership of American science. Back in 2003 when SARS emerged, that terrible virus that killed 8,000 people in China and -- it killed 800 but was 10 percent mortality rate in China and then, in Toronto, the NIH responded in a very substantive way. It said, you know what, I think -- we think coronaviruses are going to be here for a long time.

And they embarked on a very ambitious program to support vaccines way back then, knowing that this won't be the last coronavirus. And they were right. Then we had MERS in 2012 and now COVID-19. And by that foresight, that wisdom that came out of National Institute of Health, that's one we identified the spike protein is the target. That's what allowed us to get to this point, today. This was deliberate. This is not -- this is not an accident.

BLITZER: And we are grateful to those scientists. Can't come quickly enough, given the explosion of cases, hospitalizations and deaths unfolding in the United States right now, record, record numbers.

And you're an expert in this area of vaccines, Dr. Hotez. Has the United States ever taken on a distribution plan this complicated, this challenging? HOTEZ: Well, we've come a little bit close to it. You know, every year, we do this elaborate dance for influenza vaccine, where we roll out 85 million doses of flu vaccine beginning in August and vaccinate, over a period of several months.

Now, it's not quite as ambitious an undertaking as this. This has a lot of logistical challenges because of the deep freeze and all of the politics swirling around it.

[18:45:02]

But I think we -- I think it will go OK.

You know, the -- I think one of the things the American people have to appreciate is there will be bumps in the road. We heard about the allergic reactions in the two NHS individuals in the U.K. There's going to be things like that, that are happening all the way through.

And that's why the communication piece is going to be so important. Having our best government scientists out there, communicating to the American people. And I think if we do that, we can get through this.

BLITZER: Dr. Hotez, thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate your expertise. Really appreciate your joining us.

HOTEZ: Thank you, again, Wolf.

BLITZER: Thank you.

Just ahead, how Congress's failure to act is leaving millions and millions of Americans to suffer, right now, the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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BLITZER: Beyond record coronavirus cases, hospitalizations and deaths, millions of Americans are suffering very deeply right now from the pandemic's economic fallout.

CNN's Brian Todd is working this part of the story.

Brian, it's remarkable that Congress has failed and failed and failed to pass another relief package to help millions of Americans who are really hurting.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is indeed remarkable, Wolf. And as an example, the restaurant association of Maryland now says without another stimulus bill, almost half the restaurant operators in the state of Maryland say that it's unlikely that they can keep their doors open six months from now. But this is it pain being felt all over the country.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TODD (voice-over): A chef and manager of several restaurants in Minnesota puts it bluntly, he's out of work for the second time this year and he and his colleague, he says, are running on fumes.

J.D. Fratzke chokes up when he talks about people who were his paying customers now coming to his restaurants to pick up any groceries they can.

J.D. FRATZKE, RESTAURANT MANAGER IN MINNESOTA: That will hopefully provide the same comfort and safety we hoped our restaurants would be able to offer.

TODD: Baltimore's mayor trying to fend off a devastating COVID spike in the city has just ordered restaurants and bars to close all indoor and outdoor dining. Only carry-out and delivery are available.

A co-owner of Jimmy's Famous Seafood doesn't know how long he can language on.

JOHN MINADAKIS, CO-OWNER, JIMMY'S FAMOUS SEAFOOD, BALTIMORE: It's just devastating. You know, a lot of city restaurants and bars have been hanging on by a thread and this effectively pulls the plug on all of them. We have to find new and creative ways for them to subsidize their income somehow because I told them, you know, the government won't take care of you but we will.

TODD: The government isn't taking care of them. Democrats and Republicans in Congress still unable to agree to a second coronavirus stimulus bill to help Americans who have lost so much. This as the Labor Department reports that another 853,000 Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits last week.

JOSEPH LLOBRERA, CENTER ON BUDGET AND POLICY PRIORITIES: We are stunned and infuriated that Congress really hasn't acted to renew relief. Now is the time for Congress to act boldly, not maybe nickel and dime the American public.

TODD: One restaurant analyst believes there could be 50,000 to 60,000 permanent restaurant closures in America due to the pandemic and without a stimulus bill --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the longer it goes on, the more carnage (ph) we're going to have in the states. You're seeing the sales already start to backtrack. There is really no reason to believe that sales trends will improve in December or even January given the cold weather.

TODD: And the food insecurity crisis in America remains dire. More than 50 million Americans may not have enough to eat by the end of this year, in part because of the pandemic. That's according to Feeding America, the largest hunger relief group in the U.S.

In an area of the Bronx, New York, that has one of the highest rates of food insecurity among children in the country, Regina Status received a delivery from a food pantry just in time to feed her and her two children for Thanksgiving, then she spoke to CNN. REGINA STATUS, NEW YORK RESIDENT: Just survive it. That's all I can

say. You just have to survive it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

TODD (on camera): And the projections keep getting more dire as Congress remains deadlocked on a stimulus bill. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities tells us that it estimates that between 7 million and 11 million children in America are in households where they don't have enough to eat -- Wolf.

BLITZER: You know, Brian, what about carry-out? Is that enough at all to help keep many of these restaurants, keep their doors open?

TODD: You know, it really is not, Wolf. We talked to this restaurant analyst, Peter Saleh (ph), who says that's a misconception that restaurants can keep afloat by just offering carry-out. He said through all the ups and downs of the industry this year, the carry-out services and all of that just does not do it for them. The ones that are relying only on carry-out with no dining in or out are likely to go under.

BLITZER: Our message to Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate -- get it done.

TODD: Yes.

BLITZER: As we often say, don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Come up with a compromise. You got to pass this relief package. You got to pass it in the coming days, otherwise millions and millions of our fellow Americans, they are going to be in trouble. They won't be able to eat. They won't be able to take care of their kids. This is a crisis.

Brian, thank you very much for that report.

More news right after this.

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[18:59:33]

BLITZER: Breaking just now, the United States just set a record for coronavirus hospitalizations, 107,248 Americans are in hospitals because of COVID right now.

Finally, we honor a wonderful couple in our nightly tribute to the victims of coronavirus. Arnold and Carolyn Sotke of Michigan were both rushed to the hospital on their 50th wedding anniversary. They died three days apart.

Their daughter Brandy says they were kind, caring and genuine. She says her parents made the world a better place. Carolyn was 75. Arnold was 77.

May they rest in peace and may their memories be a blessing. "ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.