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The Situation Room
Interview With Brooklyn Center, Minnesota Mayor Mike Elliott; Closing Arguments Delivered In Derek Chauvin Trial; Now, Jury Deliberating In Derek Chauvin Murder Trial; Gun Deaths Climb Higher After Violent Weekend Across The Nation; All People Age 16-Plus Now Eligible For A COVID Vaccine In U.S. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired April 19, 2021 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:02]
WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: And major cities, in fact, across the United States have increased security in anticipation of possible protests and unrest.
Let's go to CNN's Omar Jimenez. He's on the scene for us in Minneapolis right now.
Omar, jurors, they were sent into deliberations about an hour ago. What's the latest?
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Wolf.
The jury is currently deliberating. This is what people have been waiting for, for almost a year now, the opportunity at this process. Now, as far as we know, it's expected that we will get notification whenever the jury starts deliberations at the beginning and ends of each day.
Could go well into the evening as well. And then as -- in regards to the length of time overall, they were told by the judge to pack for a long time, and hope for a short one. But we understand that a verdict could come even over the weekend, if it comes to that.
And then, of course, all of this is happening as each side in this trial makes their final pitch to the jurors right before they began those deliberations.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
STEVE SCHLEICHER, MINNESOTA PROSECUTOR: His name was George Perry Floyd Jr.
OMAR JIMENEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The first words in closing arguments for the prosecution were not of the man on trial, but of the man they want jurors to remember.
GEORGE FLOYD, DIED IN POLICE CUSTODY: I can't breathe.
SCHLEICHER: This case is exactly what you thought when you saw it first, when you saw that video. It is exactly that. You can believe your eyes.
JIMENEZ: The prosecution arguing it was Derek Chauvin's knee to the neck that eventually killed Floyd. Chauvin is facing second-degree murder and manslaughter charges, along with third-degree murder, the most serious of which carries a penalty of up to 40 years in prison.
And the prosecution took jurors back through witness testimony with diagrams and charts, reminding them of why they say Chauvin is guilty of it all and why he had every opportunity to stop what happened that day.
SCHLEICHER: He knew better. He didn't do better.
JIMENEZ: Making clear this trial was not about the Minneapolis Police Department, but about one former Minneapolis police officer.
SCHLEICHER: This is not an anti-police prosecution. It's a pro-police prosecution.
JIMENEZ: The defense began on the topic of what a reasonable officer would have done considering the totality of the circumstances, including the violence of the initial struggles.
ERIC NELSON, ATTORNEY FOR DEREK CHAUVIN: The nine minutes and 29 seconds ignores the previous 16 minutes and 59 seconds. It completely disregards it. It says, in that moment, at that point, nothing else that happened before should be taken into consideration by a reasonable police officer.
JIMENEZ: Then, largely sticking to their themes that George Floyd died from drug use and his medical history, that Chauvin did exactly what he was trained to do, and the perceived threat of a growing crowd distracted Chauvin.
NELSON: In the precise moment the force was used demonstrates that this was an authorized use of force, as unattractive as it may be.
JIMENEZ: Prosecutors pushing back and their opportunity for rebuttal.
JERRY BLACKWELL, MINNESOTA SPECIAL ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL: When Mr. Floyd is saying, "Please, please, I can't breathe" 27 times in just a few minutes, you saw it when Mr. Chauvin did not let up and didn't get up.
When he knows it doesn't have a pulse, he doesn't let up or get up. Even when the ambulance comes, he doesn't let up or get up even then.
JIMENEZ: Each side hoping to leave a dozen jurors with a final impression before they deliberate on one of the most consequential cases in Minnesota history, as the world watches.
NELSON: There is absolutely no evidence that Officer Chauvin intentionally, purposefully applied unlawful force.
SCHLEICHER: This wasn't policing. This was murder. JIMENEZ: Outside the courtroom, a city and country braces for reaction
to the verdict when it comes, with many cities on higher alert, while Minneapolis has added more fortifications outside police precincts and the Minnesota governor is now requesting law enforcement resources from Ohio and Nebraska in advance of a verdict, while, back inside the courtroom, once jurors had begun deliberations, the judge expressed frustration at Congresswoman Maxine Waters for telling protesters to stay in the streets if the verdict is anything but guilty.
PETER CAHILL, HENNEPIN COUNTY, MINNESOTA, JUDGE: I wish elected officials would stop talking about this case, especially in a manner that is disrespectful to the rule of law and to the judicial branch and our function.
I think if they want to give their opinions, they should do so in a respectful and in a manner that is consistent with their oath to the Constitution.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JIMENEZ: Now, significantly, on that exchange, the judge told the defense that Congresswoman Waters may have given them something to appeal with that could overturn this entire trial.
But then he brought things back to this case, saying he doesn't think those comments matter in this case, saying that he trusts the jurors have been staying away from the news, and he denied the motion for a mistrial that was brought forward by the defense.
[18:05:07]
We're also expecting an update from law enforcement and more details on the governor's request to bring in additional law enforcement to assist in the response to protests.
And then, finally, we should mention and note that all of this is in preparation for a verdict. But until we get there, Wolf, all we can do is wait.
BLITZER: That's what we certainly will be doing.
Omar, thank you very much.
Joining us now, Antonio Romanucci, an attorney for George Floyd's family and for Daunte Wright's family as well.
Tony, thanks very much for joining us.
As you know, George Floyd's brother Philonise, he was in the courtroom today as the prosecution told jurors about George Floyd and what he meant to his loved ones. How emotional was it for the family to hear these closing arguments today?
ANTONIO ROMANUCCI, ATTORNEY FOR FLOYD AND WRIGHT FAMILIES: Well, if I can only describe it in very few words. They felt it was an ordeal today. They felt anger. On the other hand, they have a little bit of hope. They felt that the
that the defense argument was like fishing without a bait on the hook. They're frustrated. They want to see an end to this process. And they're looking forward to a verdict and a conviction at the highest level possible.
BLITZER: The prosecution said George Floyd asked for help with his very last breath -- that's a direct quote -- and Chauvin refused.
Do you believe the prosecution has made the case that Chauvin is guilty?
ROMANUCCI: I believe the prosecution made a very clear case today that Derek Chauvin is guilty of second-degree murder.
Their story today that they told in a very analytical, methodical, very graphical process, they really tied together all the elements for second-degree murder, and they showed the jury how they can reach it.
Now, we are hopeful of that conviction, and that they all concur that there was a crime at that second-degree murder level.
BLITZER: Chauvin's defense attorney, Eric Nelson, you heard him argue that this case is about much more than those nine minutes and 29 seconds, that jurors need to look at the resistance leading up to that point.
How do you respond to that?
ROMANUCCI: I can only respond to that -- that is such a gross distortion of what this case is about.
Eric Nelson wants you to believe that this case started the day before, when George Floyd went to sleep. No, this case is about the event, when Derek Chauvin was kneeling on his neck. It's a horrible distortion to try and back -- walk the jury back 16 minutes when whatever force was used in order to subdue him or put the handcuffs on him has nothing to do with the knee on the neck.
That's why I was so upset at that argument.
BLITZER: The defense attorney, Eric Nelson, also argued potential prosecutorial misconduct and claimed comments by Democratic Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California intimidated the jury.
What was your reaction to that point Nelson was making?
ROMANUCCI: Well, to that point, I mean, it's obvious that he's grasping at any potential element for appeal that he has.
Maxine Waters is a congresswoman. She's entitled to her First Amendment right also. She has the freedom of speech. Her comments that were made, there is no evidence that anybody on the jury heard them or that they had any effect.
So, Eric Nelson's argument really is a hollow one. It's like poking holes in water, without anybody knowing whether the jury heard those comments or whether they have any effect on them or will have an effect on them, I think, is fool's gold.
There's no evidence on that. And the judge -- quite frankly, he didn't ask the jury when he had the opportunity this morning, had anybody listened to the news? So I think there's no issue on appeal now. I think it's gone.
BLITZER: He instructed them at the beginning of this trial not to listen to the news, even though they weren't sequestered.
ROMANUCCI: Right.
BLITZER: Now they're all sequestered as they deliberate.
All eyes are on these 12 members of the jury, as you know, Tony. How long do you expect the deliberations potentially could take?
ROMANUCCI: Well, it's hard to guess.
But, again, if I were to look at what the jury is going to do, they have to evaluate three criminal charges. There was a lot of evidence produced here. And I know juries take this job so, so seriously.
I don't think there's going to be a quick verdict. I don't see it coming down tomorrow. Wednesday is a possibility, Thursday, obviously, as we get later in the week. There is a potential for a verdict. The longer it goes, then there are there are other issues that come into play.
[18:10:02]
But I think that juries take their jobs so seriously. They're going to sit there. They're going to walk through those instructions, weigh the evidence, go back, their memories, their notes. And it's -- I don't think it's going to be tomorrow.
BLITZER: Cities across the country, not only Minneapolis, but right here in D.C., in Washington, D.C., elsewhere around the country, are preparing for possible unrest in reaction to a verdict.
What's the Floyd family's message to the protesters?
ROMANUCCI: Well, the Floyd family has always been unified. They want peaceful protests, period.
They don't want to see destruction of property. They certainly don't want to see anyone hurt. their mantra is, justice for George is justice for everyone. So, if there is a conviction at the highest level, there is a conviction that is satisfactory to the Floyd family, it should be to the community and to the communities in this country.
We do not want to see any destruction of property or harm to people.
BLITZER: Well said.
Tony, thanks very much.
Tony Romanucci represents the Floyd family. Appreciate it very much.
ROMANUCCI: Thank you.
BLITZER: Let's bring in CNN political commentator the attorney Bakari Sellers, CNN legal analyst Paul Callan, and retired Major Neill Franklin, who served with the Maryland state and Baltimore police departments.
Bakari, this was an extremely dramatic day, hours and hours of closing arguments, with the prosecution arguing this wasn't policing, this was murder. What did you make of those closing arguments?
BAKARI SELLERS, CNN POLITICAL COMMENTATOR: I thought the prosecution was powerful, Wolf.
I mean, to be completely honest with you, this was probably the most well-put-together, best prosecution that I have ever seen, either in a courtroom myself or with cameras in the courtroom as the world is watching this trial, that, regardless of the verdict, I want people to know and understand that this prosecution did the best job they could possibly do.
On the flip side, even today, in the criminal defense's opportunity for closing, it drug out a decently long time. He misinterpreted the law, either intentionally or unintentionally. That had to be cleaned up a few times.
I don't know if it's the quality of the attorney or just the lack of facts that are there to present on his side. People always say that it's very difficult to defend the indefensible, which is what I think we saw with the criminal defense side here.
But at the end of the day, Wolf, he threw everything he had, everything he had against the wall, from carbon monoxide, to it wasn't his fault, to the crowd, to everything he possibly had, trying to find one juror to hang their hat on something other than murder, and we will see what happens.
BLITZER: Yes.
And on that point, Paul, was Chauvin's defense attorney, Eric Nelson -- he went on for maybe three hours, if not more. Was he able to sum up his closing argument and potentially create some reasonable doubt in that closing argument?
PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: He started out very slow in this trial. He kind of bumbled around in the beginning of the trial, but always he would kind of get to a good point in his cross-examinations.
And I was expecting a really weak performance. I found it -- unlike my friend Bakari, I found it to be a relatively strong performance for an attorney who has a very difficult case. And what he did was, he kind of shifted the focus of the case by saying, listen, look at the entire totality of the circumstances. And as he went through the whole -- the whole case, not just the last
nine-and-a-half minutes, he would then take out the book of regulations as to what the Minneapolis Police Department requires of its officers. And he would juxtapose that on the screen against what really happened and said, all of these things were authorized by the codebook in Minneapolis.
And then, finally, when he reached that last nine-and-a-half minutes, and more particularly maybe the last three minutes of the tape, he had by that time put on the record the fact that Floyd was out of control when they tried to put him into the police van, that he was saying, "I can't breathe" even when he was on his feet when he was first apprehended.
And that was meant to suggest that, later on, Chauvin didn't have to believe that when it came up again. That's what Nelson was really saying to the jury when he was saying, look at the whole totality of the circumstances.
But I think, in the end, it was an argument in which the attorney is not looking for an acquittal. He's really looking more for -- to hold up one or two holdout jurors and get himself a hung jury.
BLITZER: And...
CALLAN: All in all, I thought he did the best he could with a very difficult case. Prosecutors presented a brilliant case.
And I agree with Bakari completely on that. The two of them were wonderful attorneys. They were brought from outside the office, which a lot of people don't even realize, that they're not regular assistant DAs in Minneapolis. They were both brought into this case to handle it.
[18:15:03]
And I thought they did a brilliant job.
BLITZER: Yes, that would be Jerry Blackwell and Steve Schleicher.
Those were the two prosecuting attorneys who made the closing arguments.
Major Franklin, the defense -- the defense attorney argued that Chauvin was following his training and a reasonable officer would have done the same thing. What's your reaction to that?
NEILL FRANKLIN, FORMER BALTIMORE POLICE MAJOR: So well, I'm glad you said that word, reasonable officer.
I have to speak to one police officer, reasonable police officer, that thinks that what he did was within training, was within policy, was within best practices. And I think the prosecution put it very simply, pretty much said that a child could understand that this was excessive force, speaking about the 9-year-old girl who said, "Get off of him." Even she was able to recognize this. And, again, the defense tried to make the case that the prone position, handcuffed prone position is not a dangerous position, talking about these studies.
Well, I'll tell you, every police department across this country has established policy to the contrary of that, because we believe, we know, we have seen it case after case where people have died when they're handcuffed in the prone position.
So I don't think he did a good job. I think it's clear. So we will see what the jury decides. The bottom line is, in your custody, in your care.
BLITZER: All right, everybody, stand by.
We're going to continue our special coverage here in THE SITUATION ROOM. We're going to have much more on the heightened security also in the Minneapolis area just ahead of the Chauvin trial verdict.
I will speak live with the mayor of nearby Brooklyn Center that's also been rocked by the police killing of Daunte Wright.
Stand by.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:20:50]
BLITZER: We're back with our breaking news coverage of the Derek Chauvin murder trial now in the hands of the 12 jurors.
The Minnesota National Guard, by the way, is on alert, in anticipation of a verdict in the hours, perhaps days ahead.
Joining us now, Mayor Mike Elliott of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. That's only a few minutes away from Minneapolis, but Brooklyn Center is a city that's also been rocked by the police killing of a black man, Daunte Wright.
Mayor Elliott, thank you so much for joining us. I know this has been a very traumatic few weeks for you and your community.
How are the people, first of all, of Brooklyn Center doing tonight?
MIKE ELLIOTT, MAYOR OF BROOKLYN CENTER, MINNESOTA: Well, Wolf, first, I just want to extend my condolences to Daunte's family.
I have gotten a chance to spend some time with them and gotten to meet his cousins and uncles and aunties. And they're just such a wonderful, resilient, really loving family, and just an important member of our community now.
My community of Brooklyn Center is, I think, right now, sort of -- we're collectively catching our breath from what's happened over the last week. My folks in my community have come out to volunteer and help distribute food and basic necessities to people who are in need. We have been helping people find shelter who are nearby the police station where the protest has been occurring.
So we're coming together as a community, and we're healing, and we're beginning that process of starting to recover.
BLITZER: What steps are you taking to prepare for the potential protests once the verdict and the Derek Chauvin trial comes down?
ELLIOTT: Well, our department is actively planning. We're working along with the other regional law enforcement partners, along with the states.
And we're planning to make sure that, if there are -- continue to be bigger crowds of protests, that we're prepared, we're ready to keep the peace in our community, but, at the same time, make sure that we're providing space for protesters to protest and express their constitutional right to gather and deliver their demands, deliver their grievances to the government.
BLITZER: As you know, Mayor, the Biden administration here in Washington says it's been in touch with local authorities ahead of this highly anticipated verdict.
Have you spoken with the White House directly? Have you offered your community support or resource -- have they, I should say, the White House, offered community support for -- or resources to your community?
ELLIOTT: Certainly, early on, I did speak with the White House, when this began, and they extended their support, whatever we need.
And there are members of the administration that are here on the ground that are meeting with us regularly. In fact, I met with members of the administration this morning, yesterday. They're actively engaged and involved in this, in what's happening here and bringing resources to bear.
So we're really grateful to the White House for their continued support.
BLITZER: Well, that's encouraging.
The lieutenant governor of Minnesota -- and you know this -- tweeted a realization she has had, writing this. She said: "As a child advocate, I am grappling with the stark reality. Minnesota is a place where it is not safe to be black."
Is she right?
ELLIOTT: She's absolutely right, Wolf.
This is something that people in my community have been grappling with for a very long time. It's not safe to drive in Minnesota while you're black. I mean, the fact of the matter is, there are so many of us who drive, and if we see police behind us, we're afraid. We're trembling.
[18:25:00] And that is a kind of terror that no citizens of the United -- no citizen of the United States should ever have to face. It's constant. It's ever-present.
And so it's something that must change.
(CROSSTALK)
BLITZER: Mayor, have you personally experienced that over these years?
ELLIOTT: Absolutely, Wolf, at the hands of my own police department, even as a student in high school playing in the park with other friends of mine, a multiracial group among -- we -- myself and another friend of mine were the only two black kids who were at the park that day playing.
And, out of nowhere, we had police officers come and pick the two of us up out of the group of our friends and put us in the back of a squad, take us. And we were shown to someone in a window to be identified as perhaps potentially criminals or something like that.
But that was quite a traumatic experience. In Minneapolis, I have had -- randomly been stopped because the officer said I took the cart out of the store and took it back in the store and got back in my car. And he was somehow concerned that maybe that meant I was dealing drugs.
I have had officers almost throw me off my bike just coming back from biking down the parkway, saying that someone called and said they saw their neighbor's back door open and saw me riding down the sidewalk, down the street, and thought maybe, for some reason, I had burglarized their neighbor's home, which, of course, was not possible, because I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt.
So, this happens all the time here in Minnesota, and I believe it happens all over the country. This is real. It's time for a reckoning. It is time for us as a country to come together and once and for all resolve this problem.
I'm very disappointed that, even after the killing of George Floyd, the -- our state legislature did not pass meaningful reform. I'm very disappointed about that. And until we do, these problems are going to continue to happen. We need real reform. And we need it now.
BLITZER: Yes, and you're absolutely right. It's not just Minnesota. But it's all over the country. I hear this from my black friends, black men who have grown up here in the United States, many of them very, very successful.
But they -- and you're the mayor of this city. But they tell very similar stories that you tell, that they were simply stopped because they might have been driving a nice car, and some police officer didn't like the way that looked, if you will. And it was a tense situation.
What do we need to do, Mayor? Well, first of all, in your community, how do we fix this? ELLIOTT: The first thing we all have to do, Wolf, is, we all have to
commit to working together to resolve this.
We have to pass policies on the local level, on the regional and state levels. And, of course, the bill that's currently pending in the U.S. Congress that is the George Floyd Act, that bill needs to be passed. It needs to be passed now. There's meaningful legislation in the state legislature here, Minnesota, that has passed the House, but it needs to pass the Senate. That needs to be done now.
On the local levels, we're taking certain steps. The city of Minneapolis just a couple days ago voted to remove traffic enforcement from the police department, from armed police, to more of a civilian unit. So, there are tangible steps that we can take. My city is going to be looking at implementing some of those reforms.
And they are reforms that work. The research has shown that they work. And we just have to really move away from thinking about policing and thinking about public safety and public health, because I believe that, if we have focus that as our priority, then we're going to be open to more of the sort of innovative changes that need to be -- that need to happen in order for us to transform the state of public safety in our communities.
It's -- it just -- it needs to happen now. There's no reason that we should be waiting. And in doing so, we need to make sure that we're treating protesters in a humane way as well.
BLITZER: I understand, Mayor, you're getting ready for Daunte Wright's funeral. I think it's on Thursday. Is that right?
ELLIOTT: That is correct.
I have spoken with his family. And they have agreed -- or they're allowing me to appear and to attend and be at the funeral.
[18:30:02]
And I'm sad and I know I'm going to breakdown. I already broke down this week. It's going to be very difficult to be there, but I want to be there. I want to be there to help see Daunte off. He is an incredibly important member of our community. He's going to be missed dearly. And you know, it's a real sad, sad day Thursday is going to be, but I will be there.
And let me just say a word about Daunte's father and mother. They are just the most loving people in the world, the most gentle people in the world as well as I've gotten to meet and know them. And I couldn't be more proud of having them, you know, as part of our community, Wolf.
BLITZER: Well, please convey our deepest, deepest condolences to his parents and the entire family and to your community. I know this has been extremely, extremely painful. We will stay in close touch with you, Mayor. Good luck. I know these are very, very difficult, tense days. Mayor Mike Elliot of Brooklyn Center in Minnesota, thanks so much for joining us.
ELLIOTT: Thank you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Coming up, what President Biden is doing to prepare for a verdict in the Chauvin trial and the potential unrest. And I'll talk with CNN's own Don Lemon about this very tense moment for the nation and where it may lead. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:35:00]
BLITZER: Tonight, a nation very much on edge as jury deliberations are now underway in the murder trial of former police officer Derek Chauvin. Here in Washington, the city has asked the National Guard to deploy a quick response force of at least 300 troops just ahead of a verdict.
Let's go to our Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins. Kaitlan, President Biden is preparing for the possibility of new protest unrest. What are you hearing?
KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Wolf, he's been privately expressing concern about what the reaction to this verdict could be. And the White House says we will hear from President Biden regardless, of course, of what verdict it is that this that jury decides now that they are deliberating on it's what going to be. And, of course, the question is not just what's going to happen here in Washington, but also what's going to happen across the country as a result of what that verdict is.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS (voice over): The White House bracing tonight for the outcome of Derek Chauvin's murder trial.
JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: As you all know, the jury is deliberating. We're in touch with local authorities. We're in touch with states, with governors, with mayors.
COLLINS: President Biden has kept a close eye on the trial and privately raised concerns about unrest if the public isn't satisfied with the verdict.
PSAKI: There is a range of conversations about how to ensure that no matter what the outcome, there is space for peaceful protest.
COLLINS: One lawmaker who met with Biden last week was South Carolina Congressman Jim Clyburn.
REP. JIM CLYBURN (D-SC): Something is wrong with us accepting the fact that just because you put on a gun and a badge, nothing else matters.
COLLINS: Another Democrat is pushing back against criticism she was stoking tensions ahead of the outcome with these comments. REP. MAXINE WATERS (D-CA): We've got to get more active. We've got to get more confrontational. We've got to make sure that they know that we need this.
COLLINS: As for the president's response to Congresswoman Maxine Waters, Press Secretary Jen Psaki says he's calling for calm.
PSAKI: He has been very clear that he recognizes the issue of police violence against people of color, communities of color is one of great anguish. But as he also always says, protests must be peaceful.
COLLINS: While awaiting a verdict, the president's team is touting new progress tonight in the fight against coronavirus.
ANDY SLAVITT, SENIOR ADVISER TO WHITE HOUSE COVID-19 RESPONSE TEAM: I want to tell you today that things are about to get a whole lot easier.
COLLINS: All adults in the U.S. are now eligible to get vaccinated. 50 percent have now received at least one dose and a third of adults have all been fully vaccinated. With the U.S. administering an average of 3.2 million doses a day, Biden's top officials are now facing questions about when masks and other restrictions can come off.
DR. VIVEK MURTHY, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: If more people get vaccinated, the closer we get to that day, when we can relax all of those restrictions.
COLLINS: The vaccine progress comes as medical officials are still investigating whether Johnson & Johnson's shot is linked to a rare blood clotting disorder in six recipients out of 6 million who have got the shot.
DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, CDC DIRECTOR: This has been a handful of cases. Not an overwhelming number of cases. We are working through and adjudicating them.
COLLINS: All 50 states have suspended the J&J shot while waiting for a vaccine advisory panel to meet this Friday. And Dr. Anthony Fauci says he expect a decision by the end of the week.
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: I would imagine that what we will see is that, it would come back, and that would come back in some sort of either warning or restriction.
COLLINS: Meanwhile, the White House was on defense today after President Biden backed off his pledge to raise the number of refugees allowed in the U.S. to 62,500 this fiscal year.
Two weeks ago, when I asked if he was committed to raising it to that number by the end of this fiscal year, you said without hesitation, yes.
PSAKI: He will absolutely be putting out a cap, an increased cap over the course in advance of May 15th. That goal is always aspirational. It was always a huge goal.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COLLINS (on camera): Now, Wolf, when it comes to the outcome of what this trial is going to be, we should note that the army is going to approve a request for National Guard here in D.C., of course, the nation's capital.
And we should note the mayor's office has also asked for a quick response force of about 300 additional members on top of those troops because, of course, the concern that officials have here including back at the White House is what the response is going to be and how it plays out across the nation.
[18:40:09]
BLITZER: A lot of nervous people here in D.C. and other cities across the country. Kaitlan, thank you very much.
Let's bring in my colleague and friend "CNN TONIGHT" Anchor, Don Lemon, the author of "The New York Times" best seller, "This Is The Fire: What I Say to My Friends About Racism." It was the number one bestseller in "The New York Times." Congratulations Don, on that.
But let's begin with the controversy over that comment we just heard from Congresswoman Maxine Waters, who said if the verdict is not guilty, she said, quote, we get more active, we've got to get more confrontational. What's your take on all of this?
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: OK. So I want to be in, if you'll give me some time with this, Wolf, I want to be clear, because there's no nuance anymore. Maxine Waters is a sharp-tongued rabble-rousing lawmaker who came out of the civil rights movement, and as a black woman who had to fight tooth and nail for everything she has gotten. So while I as a black person can understand her rage and her anger, I understand that, and I understand that she makes a lot of people uncomfortable.
Now, look at me, everyone. Do you really think Maxine Waters is calling for violence? Maxine Waters is not calling for violence. Everyone knows that. She makes a lot of people uncomfortable, especially a lot of men and, quite frankly, especially a lot of white men, because she puts them in their place. She tells you, shut up, respect this person, don't talk to me that way and she gives it to you like it is.
Now, that said, do I think what she said was constructive? Absolutely not. Do I think that she should have said it? Absolutely not. Do I think that she gave her enemies ammunition? I certainly do. She handed it to them. And that's the problem.
Maxine Waters is not the issue here and we cannot be distracted by Maxine Waters. There's a baseball game going on and everyone's watching the fight in the stands. And, of course, the defense is going to use Maxine Waters as a defense. They're going to use anything that they can use. That is obvious. But Maxine Waters is not the problem when it comes to state violence against black people. And we have got to keep our eye on the prize.
And the people who are criticizing her, quite frankly, most of the people are the insurrectionists people who supported the insurrection on Capitol Hill or the people who support the lie about the election, or the people in many ways who are supporting state violence against black people.
So was it strategic for Maxine Waters to say what she said in this moment? No. She needs to be more responsible with her words. And considering how long she has been in the Congress and the public eye, she should know better.
But was Maxine Waters really calling for people to loot and riot? I think most people with half a brain know that's not what she was doing. Should she have been more responsible and more careful? Absolutely. So there is nuance in that.
I don't want to sit here and criticize and demonize Maxine Waters for speaking the truth for where she comes from and what she is in the urgency for people to get out and demonstrate and demonstrate in the right way, not causing riots and violence.
Again, more careful with her words, but there is nuance in this. And I don't think that we should be putting all of this blame on Maxine Waters. The judge said it himself, a congresswoman's opinion really does not matter a whole lot and then denied the mistrial request.
So I think we stick with that, keep our eye on the prize. Maxine Waters, keep your eye on the prize and don't say things that give your enemies ammo and that takes the focus off of what we should be focusing on, and that is the trial and how people should be exercising their First Amendment rights peacefully.
BLITZER: I also want to get your immediate reaction to what we just heard from the mayor of Brooklyn Center, near Minneapolis, Mike Elliott. He told me about his personal experiences as a black man in Minnesota. I want you to listen and our viewers to listen to his own words.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ELLIOTT: I've had an officer almost throw me off my bike just coming back from biking down the park way, and, you know, saying that someone called and said they saw their neighbor's backdoor open and saw me riding down the sidewalk, down the street and thought maybe for some reason I had burglarized their neighbor's home, which, of course, was not possible because I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt.
So this happens all the time, you know, here in Minnesota and I believe it happens all over the country. This is real. It's time for a reckoning.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BLITZER: He also told me it's not safe to drive in Minnesota while you're black. Those are his exact words, powerful words. What did you think?
[18:45:00]
LEMON: I think they are powerful words and I think he's right that in this moment we all need to be as candid as only and speak our own truths. That's part of the reason that we're here. That's part of the diversity of the country.
That's part of the reason he's there as the black mayor of Brooklyn Center. It's part of the reason I'm here as a black journalist on CNN, is to express how -- the lens through which we view the country and the experiences -- the personal experiences that we have in this country.
I cannot speak to his experience, because I've never lived in Minnesota, but I've lived in a number of states here in the United States and I've received similar treatment from police officers. I've had positive experiences with police officers. But more often than not, meaning mostly just for traffic violations or being pulled over for speeding, more often than not, people -- the officers don't tend to treat you with respect and they don't tend to do that with my brothers and sisters who are white, quite frankly.
So, he's speaking his truth. I'm speaking my truth. And many people across the country --
BLITZER: Yeah.
LEMON: -- people of color, are speaking their truth in this moment. I think that's what's needed.
BLITZER: Don Lemon, thank you very, very much.
And Don, of course, will have much more on the Chauvin trial tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern, "CNN TONIGHT" with Don Lemon.
Just ahead, gun deaths here in the United States climbed even higher after multiple mass shootings across the country over the weekend.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:50:49]
BLITZER: We're following a deadly weekend of gun violence across the United States. We saw mass shootings in six states, bringing the total since last month to at least 50.
CNN's Brian Todd is looking into this for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The first light is in honor of Matthew R. Alexander.
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Delivering even more disturbing news in the wake of a mass shooting in their city. Indianapolis police announced that the 19-year-old man who fatally shot eight people at a FedEx facility before killing himself, had purchased the two assault rifles that he used legally in July and September of last year. That, despite the suspect's mother rethink concerns to police about his mental state a few months earlier, and authorities confiscating the shot to confirm him.
The Indianapolis police chief told "The New York Times", authorities have not checked the suspect under the state so called red flag law, which temporarily bans people who are found by a judge to be too dangerous from possessing a firearm.
CHERYL DORSEY, RETIRED LAPD SERGEANT: It lets me know that there is relapse somewhere in the double check system with regards to red flags. And so, if you have an individual that had their guns confiscated, you know, there needs to be maybe a separate section within the statistical data that these people are now housed so that they can be readily identified and then get lost in the crowd if you will.
TODD: This comes as the nation convulsive for more gun violence over the weekend, including a 7 year old girl shot multiple times and killed in a drive-through lane of a McDonald's in Chicago on Sunday.
Three killed, 3 wounded during a shooting at a bar in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
One person killed, and five others, including a 12 year old wounded by gunfire on Saturday. As they attended a vigil for a shooting victim in Columbus, Ohio.
Six people injured when somebody opened fire at a 12-year-old birthday party in a New Orleans suburb.
All told at least 9 dead and several wounded, just in week and violence in six states.
And since the Atlanta spa shootings on March 16th, there has been at least 15 mass shootings reported in the U.S..
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: When you have seen people getting killed, I mean, in this last month, it's just been horrifying what is happened. How can you say that's not a public health issue?
TODD: But also has health professionals and public officials worried is the idea of Americans simply accepting this kind of mask gun violence.
MAYOR JOE HOGSETT (D), INDIANAPOLIS: We must guard against resignation. Or even despair, the assumption that this is simply how it must be, and that we might as well get used to it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TODD (on camera): President Biden has in recent weeks announced executive actions on gun control, including a measure to eliminate kits that people can buy to build untraceable guns at home. The president also wants to ban assault weapons, and high-capacity magazines, and establish stricter background for gun purchases.
But despite all the mass shootings that have occurred just as president has been in office, there is little appetite among Republicans or even some moderate Democrats in Congress to enact stricter gun laws -- Wolf.
BLITZER: All right. Brian, thank you very much. Brian Todd reporting.
Just over four months since the first COVID-19 vaccines were administered here in the U.S., as of today, every American over the age of 16 is now eligible to receive the potentially lifesaving vaccination.
Let's discuss with our chief medical correspondent, Dr, Sanjay Gupta.
Sanjay, all people 16 and older can get vaccinated right now here in the U.S., but we are also seeing vaccine demand slow in some places. Is the U.S. prepared to meet the challenge of vaccinating enough of the population to reach what's called herd immunity?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it is become clear that the meeting the challenge part, the logistical part of makes making the vaccine, which is an incredible -- you know, a feat that's been achieved here, that part of it can be done. It is the hesitancy, and maybe even vaccine fade to some extent. People are saying the numbers are getting better, weather is getting warmer, do I really need this?
[18:55:01]
That is going to be a challenge. I mean, it's not something that is novel to this pandemic. But there are all these outreach programs, one of the things I thought was really important was Andy Slavitt to saying, anybody can get a vaccine within five miles of where they live, really trying to get where people are.
So, we'll see, Wolf. I mean, maybe get herd immunity over the summer, but possibly pop out of herd immunity in the fall again if not enough people have been vaccinated. So, that's going to be the key.
BLITZER: Yeah, we really have to get people vaccinated.
Sanjay, there is another development I need to talk to you about, and this is it, exactly 20 years ago today, we are talking about April 19th 2001, a young neurosurgeon began working at CNN's brand-new medical correspondent.
We have a surprise for you, Sanjay. Watch this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: I remember talking to you in your office just about the mission of CNN. I remember, I wrote this down to act upon ones convictions, while others wait, to create a positive force in the world, to provide information to people when it wasn't available before.
I got it. I am all in, I am still here. That was very inspiring to me.
The hospital, obviously, all of the windows are open because there is no air conditioning.
We have been here just a few minutes. We are already getting an idea of how busy this hospital.
Preparing to treat a patient with Ebola is like preparing to land on the moon.
This is a 15-day old baby.
Giving to communities, that is meeting expectations.
Does that -- does that were you because that seems to be what worries the --
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: No, because we're ready for. It
GUPTA: We're seeing how some of these relief works.
And, suddenly, an 18-year-old mother is thrust to the aircraft door. And this young woman is going into cardiac arrest.
It is aggressive, but I just delivered a cardiac thump, a quick, strong hit to the chest in a last-ditch effort to shock Sabina's heart back into action. Whether it worked or not, I cannot say for sure. But she came back.
The first known child to be born with microcephaly near the epicenter of the Zika epidemic. He will tell you, when he takes an overdose call, the usual suspects is a pain killer. There are people with chronic pain caught and the middle. People with addiction caught in the middle.
What we are seeing here, it is definitely caused by blow to the head?
When her son Gavin started to become ill, it was subtle.
We heard about this amazing 6-year-old from Colorado who had a rare form of epilepsy. No treatment had worked.
And then one day, desperate, her parents gave her a non psychoactive agreement from the cannabis plant.
It has medical value. That is part of the reason I change my own mind on it.
Wow! This is pretty spectacular.
It's just the idea of a true reset. We wanted to go deep into the Amazon rain forest, we wanted to live. It is something that scares every, day get us out of a comfort zone. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Please stand by for a voice check from CNN.
GUPTA: Station, this is CNN, how do you hear me?
Nice to be in the back.
Certainly by now, you know the story of Yousef.
UNIDENTIFIED BOY: Look at this, how wonderful.
GUPTA: So profoundly emotional to see how people react to His Holiness.
In order to do this operation, they have to continuously move (INAUDIBLE).
This is three-year-old Jimmy McDonald. He is starting to read.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We are joined by the new medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who is also a neurosurgeon.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BLITZER: You know, Sanjay, 20 years that we have been working together, I have seen you not only as a brilliant journalist. But also, as we just noted, a brilliant neurosurgeon. You have done both.
Did you think you would be at CNN for 20 years when you started 20 years ago today?
GUPTA: No. No, Wolf, definitely not. I mean, watching some of the early tape as well, I am surprised they kept me around as long as they did.
But no, Wolf, I don't -- I think it's uncommon, right? You set the standard for all of us. Staying in a job like this for 20 years, you do it because you love it. You do it because you think you make a difference.
So, that was very emotional, Wolf, to see that and those clips. I mean, it's just -- and I feel very privileged. I know you do, Wolf, to be a journalist. It's just so important, especially at this time.
BLITZER: Well, I speak for all of our viewers here in the United States and around the world when I say, Sanjay, we all love you, we are grateful for what you do. Thanks so much.
The first 20 have been excellent, the next 20 will be even better. Appreciate it, very, very much.
GUPTA: Very kind of you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Dr. Sanjay Gupta, our brilliant chief medical correspondent, a source of pride for all of us.
GUPTA: Thank you. BLITZER: Thank you.
"ERIN BURNETT OUTFRONT" starts right now.
