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Who should care. And its a nightmare that didnt even need to happen, at all. Exactly six months and one day ago, the Vice President of the United States, the head of the selfproclaimed wholeofgovernment effort against the outbreak said it would not happen. Heres what ran in the wall street journal six months and one day ago, under mike pences name. The piece is headlined there isnt a coronavirus second wave. Quoting now. Thanks to the leadership of President Trump and the courage and compassion of the American People, our publichealth system is far stronger than it was four months ago. And we are winning the fight against the invisible enemy. The truth is, the piece concludes, whatever the media says, our wholeofamerica approach has been a success. Success. That was six months, one day, and more than 190,000 american deaths, ago. 823 americans died, today. Those words appeared in print. Nearly 2,900 deaths, just so far, tonight. On top of more than 3,600, last night. More than a quarter million new cases, and a recordnumber of people hospitalized. No mention of any of that from the man whose name is on that oped. We will have the inside story of it shortly, by the way. No mention, either, from the president. Not a peep. Nothing, acknowledging california, today, reported its highest number of covid fatalities, ever. 379, in a single day. By contrast, just 634 south koreans have died, in the entire pandemic. Not one word about that. Or the terrifying fact that in southern california, right now, icu availability is at 0 . No capacity, at all. Nothing from the president , either, about florida. His intended, new home. Reporting more than 13,000 new cases, today. The most since july. No word from the president on that, or even a hint of encouragement for all the people who have been working so hard to save lives. Including, his own. Being surrounded by death every day in the criticalcare units, in a way that we had not previously experienced. And having patients so isolated from family members, and often with nursing staff being the only bridge between a dying patient and and their family and the outside world. Put tremendous stresses on all levels of care providers. Im very worried were going to have a prolonged tail here of a lot of providers flat out leaving the profession. And in the president cares, even a tiny bit, about this, were not aware of it. What we do know is that he is big on projection, falsely accusing others of his own bad deeds. That, and telegraphing his next move. So, its not surprising that, shortly before going radio silent on covid, he was saying this. Covid, covid, covid, covid. By the way, on november 4th, you wont hear about it, anymore. You turn on the news. Covid, covid, covid, covid, covid. Would like to talk about covid. Its covid, covid, covid, no matter what happens. Thats all i hear. I turn on television. Covid. Covid, covid, covid. A plane goes down, 500 people dead, they dont talk about it. I guarantee you this, on november 4th, you wont be hearing as much about this. Heres what happens. November 4th, you wont hear too much about it. You wont hear too much about it. You wont hear about it, anymore, he said. And he was right. We havent heard squat from him. Which is too bad, because its not even that hard to do the right thing. Just ask chris christie, who was infected with coronavirus, and also picked up, it seems, a bit of perspective. You know, lying in isolation in icu for seven days. I thought about how long i was to remove my mask at the white house. Today, i think about how wrong it is to let mask wearing divide us. Especially, as we now know, your choice is likely to get covid19 if you dont wear a mask. Because if you dont do the right thing, we could all end up on the wrong side of history. Please, wear a mask. More, now, on all of this from cnn chief white house correspondent, jim acosta. Jim, we havent seen the president , today. And even on twitter, his preferred method of communication, he only mentioned the vaccine in a tweet about stock market and stimulus talk. So, do we know what the president actually did, today . Well, john, you know how it is with shorttimers. They take that long lunch. They cut out of work early. This is a president , who has turned executive time into an art form. And he did that today. He was in the oval office for a bill signing. Press was not allowed in. Cameras not allowed in for that bill signing. He obviously does not want to take questions about how he lost the election, and his bogus, election challenges. He spoke with king salman of the saudi arabia, at one point. Although, the president has not come out and weighed in and condemned Vladimir Putin and the russians for being behind that attack. And so, it is sort of the song remains the same over here, at the white house, john. In many ways, this is a nation without a president , today, because the president did not use the bully pulpit to show any kind of sympathy for the thousands of people who lost their lives from the coronavirus, and who are going to continue to lose their lives from the coronavirus, from here on forward. So, Vice President pence is publicly receiving the vaccine, tomorrow morning. And president elect biden could get it as early as next week. Yet, we dont know when, or if, President Trump will get it. Whats the reasoning behind that . Yeah, john, in a way, Vice President pence has taken on the role of the president , from a from a bullypulpit perspective. He is going to be out in front of the cameras, tomorrow morning, at around 8 00 a. M. To to get the coronavirus vaccine. The Vice President s office has made this very clear. He wants to do this to show the American People that they can have confidence in this vaccine. Vice president biden, who is about to become president biden, is doing it for the same reason. The white house will only say, about President Trump, that he is still enjoying the benefits of some of the treatments he receiv received during his bout with the coronavirus. That, as soon as the White House Medical Team says its okay for him to get the vaccine, he will do so. But were receiving very little guidance about this, and the president is not putting himself in a position where we can ask him the question. Obviously, john, and you i know all too well, if the president of the United States, if donald trump, gets out there and says he will take the coronavirus vaccine. That will go a long way in instilling confidence in millions of his supporters that it is okay to be vaccinated. He is just not doing that, at this point. Just in the same way, hes not leading on russia. John, it has just been one of those confounding things that we have seen throughout this presidency. One of the through lines of this presidency, how he has been, at times, antiscience and prorussia. John. Jim acosta at the white house. Keep pushing, stay safe. You got it. More, now, about that wall street journal oped published six months and one day ago, under Vice President mike pences name. Saying there would be no second wave. We now know it was false assurance. And our next guest had her own objections to it, even before it ran. Olivia troy served as homeland security, counterterrorism, and Covid Task Force adviser to Vice President pence. She has since left the administration, and broken with it publicly. Were happy to have her on the program, tonight. Olivia, great to see you. I know you were against this oped being published. Can you tell us where the idea originated from . How it came to be . I dont know where it originated, inside the white house. But i can tell you that i first got word of it from my chief of staff on the Vice President s team. And he was the one, he informed a speechwriter, at the time, and myself, that we needed to work on this together. The way that works is usually with remarks or things like this, the speechwriter will take a lead on drafting. And then, theyll run it by the subjectmatter expert or the adviser which, at the time, was me. And we were forced to take on this impossible task, knowing that the data and the science and what the experts on the task force, you know. I ran it by dr. Birx. It just it wasnt there and it was a ludicrous idea. You say mark short was behind it or one of the people pushing it. Mark short is known to be skeptical or has been skeptical of many aspects of cross aorona from the beginning, even though, he, himself, was infected. How involved was the Vice President in putting it together . From my recollection, you know, i dont know what conversations mark short had with the Vice President , directly. I wasnt in the room for that discussion. If i had been, i, personally, wouldve told the Vice President , myself, that it was a bad idea. And that it would, you know, follow him for a very long time because this was the facts werent there. And i was known for briefing him, and sticking to the facts. So, i dont know, in the end. I do know the Vice President reviews things, and remarks very carefully as they go out. But i dont know what happened on the back end there, and i dont know whether it was katie miller or mark short who made the final approval on it. After it was published, what was the Vice President s reaction . He was upset. He was upset at the headline on it. And he was upset at the public backlash on it. But quite frankly, i dont know how what else he wouldve expected. Right . I mean, we knew it was going to well, those of us who were saying dont this is ridiculous, including dr. Birx, knew that this was going to be we were watching case numbers spike. And that following week, i remember that very vividly. The numbers soared in the south. And that was really, from what i recall, the turning point for the messaging and everything where there was a fullon, fullcourt press to pressure people to open up. And thats what yen you see the white house pressure governors. You see the president getting on calls and saying youve got to get in line. And he tells republicans you have got to get in line on this. We have got the election coming up. That was 190,000 deaths, ago, when that oped was published. So, looking back on whats happened since then, olivia. And to an extent, how the administration has walked away from even talking about the deaths. How does that make you feel, tonight . You know, i grieve, every day, for whats happening in this country, and how much hurt is happening. I carry that with me, and i think back to every moment of the task force. And a lot of really hard situations that happened, behind the scenes. And it is infuriating, to me. It is, also, just devastating to me that these people dont care. And, you know, theyve never cared. Some of these people never took it seriously. They never thought it was real. And their behavior was always cavalier, which made it impossible for those of us, and experts like dr. Fauci and others on the task force, who were trying to actively do the right thing. But it was impossible, given the fact that this is a white house that was never going to accept and take it seriously because they knew that they were on the losing end on it. And its just a its tragic. Do you put mike pence in that group of people . I mean, did he review this piece, before it was published . What responsibility does he have for that message . He cant be the head of the Coronavirus Task force, and especially more recently, i have been appalled at his behavior. In going along with this whole machine. You know, with the rallies, and with staff getting infected and there being outbreaks in these events that continue and the holiday parties. I dont know how you can morally look yourself in the mirror, and say this is okay. I mean, i but, at the end of the day, i know who his boss is. And i know that he has always catered to that fact. And i know that he is in a tough situation. But at some point, when people are dying and youre responsible for the protection of the country, you really have a responsible to take a stand. Olivia troy, we appreciate you being with us tonight. Thank you. Thank you. So, as we reported at the top, some welcome news on Modernas Covid vaccine. The fdas independent advisers, today, voted 200 with one abstention to recommend emergencyuse authorization. Meantime, some snags on the rollout of pfizers vaccine. A number of states now say they have been told to expect fewer doses than originally planned for by the federal governments operation warp speed. For its part, pfizer says its not having any production issues and no shipments, they say, are delayed or on hold. Dr. Sanjay gupta and also dr. Celine gounder. So, sanjay, now that the Fdaadvisory Committee has recommended authorization of the Moderna Vaccine, what comes next . And really, what are the differences between the pfizer and Moderna Vaccines . Yeah. Well, first of all, in terms of the calendar, its going to feel very familiar. It should feel very familiar to what we went through last week with the fieszpfizer rollout. We can put up the calendar. Its a recommendation that they make to the fda for authorization. Could happen even tonight. Last time, with pfizer, it happened the next day. Over this weekend, there will be these additional, Committee Meetings involving the cdc. And thats sort of the who, what, when. Trying to figure out how the Moderna Vaccine will roll out with a pretty good idea who they prioritize, the cdc, for this vaccine. Distribution and everything, you know, next week, john, monday, tuesday. Kind of like we saw with the Pfizer Vaccine, we could start to see people getting vaccinated again. So, it should happen fairly quickly. And my understanding is theres between 5 and 6 million doses of the Moderna Vaccine available. Really it astounding. Moderna says their vaccine, sanjay, involves no mixing or diluting. Does that mean we wont get that extra, added benefit that we just learned of this morning, from the Pfizer Vaccine, that they are getting more doses from each vial . Right. The heavy pour, like you call it, right, john . Yeah. Well, no. Its unlikely that the Moderna Vaccine will have those extra doses because with the Pfizer Vaccine, and this is part of the fillandfinish process is, oftentimes, they put a little extra in the vial to account for a little bit is lost when you draw it into a syringe. And that extra turned out to be a fair amount extra. Enough to make one or two doses. But the Moderna Vaccine is not being like that. So, dr. Gounder, as i mentioned, 20 members voted in favor of the recommendation. One abstained. No one opposed. The one who abstained, it really is an education. But what were the concerns behind the abstention . Well, i think there were concerns around whether we needed to be collecting Additional Data in the form of the authorization that was granted. And, you know, there theres the emergencyuse authorization, which is how these vaccines are being granted authorization. You have a fullfda approval. And honestly, from my perspective, i think its completely legitimate to offer emergencyuse authorization, understanding that we will continue to collect data on both of these vaccines, as well as any other vaccines granted emergencyuse authorization. To make sure that we continue to evaluate that they are safe and effective. And eventually, that data would be submitted to the fda to get full approval, down the line. So, sanjay, weve promised full transparency on the issue of potential reactions to the vague vaccine. But also, full perspective on it. So, in that vane, we learned today, that four people in modernas trial developed some kind of muscular neuromuscular disease. Bells palsy. Again, these are very tiny numbers of people, so thats the transparent part. Perspective. What does this mean to you . Well, you know, one way that i think about these things. I think when you hear about these sort of side effects and we are going to get an education here. But one thing like so, bells palsy, for example. One of the first questions i ask is what is just the background incidence of bells palsy . How often does it occur outside of a vaccine trial whats happening now . The answer is somewhere in 22 in every 100,000 people. So out of 44,000. Three of them in the vaccinated group. One in the placebo group. First of all, the incidence is not much higher than the average incidence that occurs, already. But it is curious the three of them were in the vaccinated group, versus placebo group. I would say, it doesnt seem to be a huge concern because its not high incidence in the general population. But we should continue to look at that. And, you know, as part of these emergencyuse authorizations, as dr. Gounder knows better than anybody, is that they have this vaccine adverseevent reporting system. But i have to tell you. Just looking at that and looking at the allergies, its not that not that worrisome, yet. We will keep an eye on it. I dont want to dismiss it but its not that worrisome. Dr. Gounder, you are nodding, in agreement. I am. I mean, some of these things just happen from other causes. Whether that be a resu rheumatological cause. So, you have to compare these rates against what is common, what is normal, in the general population. And so, what were seeing, its its kind of like what you would expect. It would be like saying, well, somebody got vaccinated, and then they had a heart attack. Well, some people are going to have heart attacks. So, just because the vaccine preceded the heart attack doesnt mean its causation. I mean, this goes back to the whole expression, correlation is not causation. Its even more than that. There is no correlation, even. Again, we promised transparency and perspective. We just gave them that. Dr. Gounder, in terms of the Pfizer Vaccine, we are hearing from officials in washington, illinois, michigan, among others, who have been told by operation warp speed they are going to receive fewer doses than originally planned for. Do you know why this is happening . What do you make of it . Well, i do know, in certain parts of the country. Where i am, in new york city, we are being hit with a pretty bad snow storm. So, that could certainly get in the way of ups and fedex deliveries. They are our two major transporters of the vaccine, at the moment. But i think its bigger than that. You know, its not just about discovering a vaccine, you know, manufacturing the vaccine. You then need to distribute that vaccine, and there are a lot of moving parts in that. And there ever maare many place things could have gone wrong along the way. Dr. Gupta, dr. Gounder. There is also breaking news, tonight, on the president elects growing and historymaking cabinet. Cnns jeff zeleny now with the latest on two more picks. Jeff, what can you tell us . John, we are learning, tonight, as president elect biden continues filling the cabinet. There are two more historymaking picks. First, the interior secretary. He is tapping new mexico congresswoman deb holland. She will be the first native american to serve as interior secretary, and to serve as cabinet secretary if confirmed if the prszesidents cabinet. This is the interior department. And of course, the long history with the interior department and native American Lands across the country make this a very interesting pick, indeed. So, this is someone that, yes, is going to take away from the democratic majority in the house, if she is confirmed. But we are told, Speaker Nancy Pelosi gave the bidentransition team her blessing for this. Now, democratic majority will be just down to three votes. So razor thin but certainly an important pick. Also, head of the epa. Michael reagan from north carolina. He heads approximanorth carolin department of environmental quality. He would be tasked with really undoing a lot of what the Trump Administration did. And both of these members of the cabinet potentially are central players in the climate team, which is going to be unveiled here in wilmington on saturday. The first woman treasury secretary, janet yellen. Pentagon chief, lloyd austin, if confirmed, the first africanamerican there. The list goes on. So clearly, this is most of the cabinet but still some key positions supposed to be done by christmas. Well see. Yeah. The keyest of those key positions, though thats not actually english, jeff, is attorney general. We dont know, yet, who that pick will be. But we do know the toptwo contenders. What have you learned . We do, john. Really, all eyes are on this attorney general position. Who is going to lead the department of justice in the posttrump era . And we are told, from a variety of sources, that two of the leading contenders tonight are judge Merrick Garland. You will remember him. He was nominated by president obama in the final year of his term to the Supreme Court. Of course, he was blocked by senate republicans, mitch mcconnell, in particular. So he is being described by allies as someone who is politically independent. One source described him to me as a boy scout. Someone who could actubsolutely answer all of these questions. And there is also alabama senator doug jones. He is very close to mr. Biden. Has a long, civil rights record, as well. So, those are two of the main contenders. John, we are told that position should be announced next week but, of course, that is up to mr. Biden to make that timing and that decision. Jeff zeleny, stick around. I want to bring in cnn political commentator, bakari sellers. Also, cnn senior political reporter, nia malika henderson. Nia, democrats grumble. Its what they do. There was some grumbling about some of president elect bidens cabinet choices. But as we look at it now, its a pretty Diverse Group. Its a very Diverse Group which is what he pledged. So, what do you make of the choices . Its true, in terms of racial diversity, its a very Diverse Group. There were some grumblings, early on, with his initial rollouts. They didnt seem like they were going to be that diverse. And you saw pressure. Pressure from civilrights group, pressure from people like representative jim clyburn, as well, who were pushing him to make good on this promise. I think there is still an open question about ideological diversity. Are these picks enough to satisfy progressives . I do know that the interior secretary pick, progressives, very much, like that. I was texting with some of those folks, early today. And that is the pick that they wanted to see. So, well have to see. Hes got some other picks to make. As you said, ag. Hes also got education to make. Department of labor. So, well see how he rounds it out and whether or not those progressives, who still have some complaining, i think, to do. And want some of those picks in in these in these other cabinet positions. They want to see their people get some jobs as well. Progressives are gushing about congresswoman deb holland, if you have been on social media. That is a pick they love. So, bakari, africanamerican voters in south carolina. Joe biden owes the nomination, i think he would admit that, to this group. He said in one of his many victory speeches over the last six weeks, he said, youve always had my back. I will have yours. So now, as the cabinet is filled out, you have the first africanamerican nominee to be secretary of defense. First africanamerican head of the epa nominated. Is joe biden proving that he does have the backs of africanamericans, at least with the cabinet selections . I mean, look. You cant say that joe biden is not doing what he promised he would do. I mean, Michael Regan at epa. Marcia fudge at hud. General austin at secretary of defense. Ill be completely honest. Deb holland. I dont know if we are giving her the respect due. Thats a bfd. To use the words of joe biden, thats a huge deal. Department of interior, to have the first native american person to be a part of a cabinet at the department of interior is huge. We cannot underscore that. I have spoken a lot of my friends. Ryan ramirez. Keith harper. The former u. N. Ambassador to the Human Rights Council who pushed for this. This is an extremely big deal. And for joe biden to make this pick just looms large. I think that that it took pressure. I mean, as as nia was saying, it takes pressure. Thats why you have these groups. Thats why you have these individuals who are pushing, the cbc, these legacy civil rights organizations, everyones applying pressure to respective caucuses and thats whats necessary, sometimes. But joe biden has risen to the occasion. And much props goes out. Im been someone who is critical, someone who praised when praise is due. And i can say, tonight, hes put justice at the forefront. With a native american pick at the front of the interior, with someone who puts justice first, we will see what happens. Where those civil rights departments have literally been gutted. But up until this point, you know, hes done everything he promised he would do. So you have to be proud about the moment were in. Lightning round. Jeff zeleny, first. Lloyd austin. General austin nominated to be defense secretary. Some complications here, having to do with the waivers because he is only four years retired from the military. Where does that stand . John, bottom line is it would be really surprising, by everyone, if he were not confirmed, at the end of the day. Yes, there are some discussions about has he been in the civilian sector long enough . The law is seven years. Hes been out for four years. But hes been talking to, you know, dozens of members of congress, already. Will be talking to more. Thats an historic pick leading a diverse military. I would be very surprised if he is not confirmed, john. Nia, Pete Buttigieg to be secretary of transportation. You know, secretary of transportation may not be the sexiest to people, cabinet position, but it is a cabinet position. He would be the first, senateconfirmed, gay man to serve in the cabinet. What do you make of it . You know, its a big job for him. Some people thought hed go to the u. N. Maybe, hed even be secretary of defense. Some people thought ambassador to china. Hes landed here. It is a big job. And again, it is history. We saw him, obviously, make history in his run and really impress with some of the things that he was able to do in pitching the biden presidency, all over the country. So, yeah, this is this is a good move for Pete Buttigieg who, obviously, has national aspirations, president ial aspirations. Bakari, you got 20 seconds. Given the year we have had and issues of racial justice, where does that land to you . Are you trying to this is a sobering reality, i guess. No, i think doug jones stands head and shoulders above everyone else. I mean, doug jones is United States attorney. Prosecuting the case against the the 16th Street Church bombers. Doug jones being a United States senator. You know, Merrick Garland is great where he is. He should remain there. Its going to be hard to replace him there. But i think this is doug joness opportunity to be attorney general. And i think that doug jones believes that justice is a verb. And so, black folk will rally around that. We know where he stands and we know where he will lead us. Thanks so much for being with us, tonight. Enjoy seeing all of you. Next, we have breaking news on another major issue that President Trump has yet to say a word about. That big, suspected, russianhacking operation, targeting this country. A member of the House Intelligence Panel joins us next. And later, accusations that the government of Florida Republican Governor Ron Desantis downplayed numbers in the state, as he tried to help President Trump get reelected. Sofi made it so easy to pay off my student loan debt. chime they were able to give me a personal loan so i could pay off all of my credit cards. chime i got my mortgage through sofi and the whole process was so easy. Choosing sofi was literally one of the best decisions i could have ever made because it gave me peace of mind. Every minute. Understanding how to talk to your doctor about Treatment Options is key. Today, we are redefining how we do things. We find new ways of speaking, so youre never out of touch. Its seeing someones face that comforts us, no matter where. When those around us know us, they can show us just how much they care. The first steps of checking in, the smallest moments can end up being everything. Theres resources that can inform us, and that spark can make a difference. When we use it to improve things, then that change can last within us. When we understand whats possible, we wont settle for less. The best thing we can be is striving to be at our best. Managing Heart Failure starts now with understanding. Call today or go online to understandheartfailure. Com for a free Heart Failure handbook. More breaking news, now. A senior white house official says President Trump has been briefed on that suspected russian hack. On some of the highest levels of government agencies, as well as some private companies, were learning now. We are learning more, by the hour, about the breadth of this huge attack. Just in the last few minutes, microsoft says its identified 40 organizations around the world that have been targeted. 80 of those, in the United States. Microsofts president says it is a certainty that the number of victims and locations will only grow. Writing, in an oped, in todays new york times, tom bossert, the administrations former cybersecurity expert said, quote, at the worstpossible time, when the u. S. Is at its most vulnerable, during a president ial transition and a devastating publichealth crisis, the networks of the federal government and much of Corporate America are compromised by a foreign nation. The reported data breech occurred at some of the most sensitive areas in multiple government agencies. Sources now say that includes the state department. It was so insidious, that republican senator, mitt romney, went out of his way, today, to assail both the company cyberdefenses and the administration in an interview with sirius xm radio. They had the capacity to show our defense is extraordinarily inadequate. That that our cyberwarfare readiness is extraordinarily weak. That, they think so little of our ability to fight back from a cyberstandpoint that they do this with immunity. So, our National National security is extraordinarily vulnerable. And in this in this setting, not to have the white house aggressively speaking out and protesting. And and taking punitive action is really, really, quite extraordinary. Joining me now, congressman jim himes, who sits on the houseintelligence committee. Go into it in too much detail but what can you tell us about the size and scope of this apparent, russian hack . Well, its its enormous. And it was very cleverly done, in the sense that it would appear the people who did this, and the government is, not yet, prepared to make a formal attribution. But it would appear, the people who did this got into an American Software maker, solar wind, changed the code. And the reason thats a very big deal is because the government is pretty good at seeing stuff that comes across the border. But this appears to have originated from a u. S. Company. And infected the world through u. S. Ip addresses. And boy, do we have a lot to learn from about that. We dont know the extent of the damage. We still dont have a good sense about whether lots of data was taken out. We know that, however, this infection was was really, very pervasive, will be global. And we, also, know, and i agree with senator romney on this, that if we dont take a very strong and clear stance and retaliate, and i do mean retaliate, depending, of course, on what we learn about what the what the cost was to us. The the whoever pulled this off, will will do it again. So, you heard part of what senator romney said there. He also mentioned that, quote, a cyberhack of this nature is really the modern equivalent of almost russian bombers flying undetected over the entire country. So, you know, as we sit here tonight, how concerned should americans be about the security of our nations most Sensitive Information . Well, they they should be concerned and we should be concerned. But we, also, shouldnt panic. Again, we know that this exploit got into a lot of computer systems. What we dont know was what it was capable of doing. Was it capable of exfiltrating, as they say . We still dont have answers to that question. So, i mean, one way to think about it is that the perpetrators of this hack got into everybodys home. What we dont know is what they did, once they were in that home. But, again, we need to learn that information. I was not entirely satisfied by what the government knows, today, about exactly how intense and and and how severe this this hack was. And then, once we understand that, whoever did this, we need to exact a very significant cost from that group so that this doesnt happen again. If youll recall, the russians, in 2016, that hack. You know, the Obama Administration did not retaliate in a way that exacted enough cost against the russians in that 2016 hack. What the u. S. Does not know or is not saying is notable in and of itself, tonight. Because i want to play you some of what President Trump has said about russia during his presidency. Listen. I think that the last person russia wants to see in office is donald trump because nobodys been tougher on russia than i have, ever. Well, i dont care what anybody says. I have been tougher on russia than any president , maybe ever. You can ask putin. Nobodys been rougher on russia than donald trump. Okay . Nobody has been tougher on russia than i have. With the sanctions and everything else. And i guarantee you that, in closed doors, putin says that to his people. Has nobody been tougher on russia than i have . By the way, nobodys been tougher on russia than me, with the sanctions. And nobody has been tougher with russia than donald trump. He has not said a single thing about this suspectedrussian hack. So, how tough can you be if you remain completely silent . Well, thats exactly right. And if it turns out that its confirmed that the russians were behind this, the fact that the president elect joe biden is talking about this hack but the current president of the United States is not. If it turns out to be the russians, that sends the same kind of signal that gets sent to the russians. And john, well remember this. It was just a couple of months ago, when there were allegations that the russians might have been paying people in afghanistan to kill our troops. I dont remember donald trump about that. And that that sends a a very, very strong signal. That silence sends a very strong signal to the russian leadership. Congressman himes, pleasure to see you. Thanks so much for being with us tonight. Thank you, john. Speaking of all things russian, president Vladimir Putin, today, denied he or any agency under his control had anything to do with the poisoning of dissent Alexei Navalny. If someone had wanted to poison him, they would have finished him off. Of a quote, shameless Disinformation Campaign to shift blame away from the russian president. All in response by cnn reporting by clarissa ward. Russian security service, fsb, formed an elite team specializing in nerve agents that followed navalnys moves, for years. Clarissa joins me now. So, clarissa, were you surprised putin didnt deny the facts of your reporting . And that he could have finished the job, if he had wanted to. Yeah. John, it was definitely a little surprising. Because this isnt the first time that someone has revealed something, a journalist has revealed something, thats been embarrassing to the kremlin or embarrassing to president putin or the security services. But its definitely the first time, that i can remember, where the response of the kremlin hasnt been to say this is outrageous, this is preposterous, this is nonsense, this is ridiculous. But actually, to say, sure, why wouldnt we follow him . And the reason that president putin gave for following Alexei Navalny for allowing fsb operatives to follow him was saying essentially he is working with u. S. Intelligence services. The question he didnt answer, though, or the allegation in our reporting that he did not speak to is the crucial one. Which is that these werent just normal, fsb operatives. They were experts in chemical weapons and poisons. They were in regular contact with a lab in moscow that is known to be producing novichok. Putin basically said, if they had really wanted to do this, they would have done it right and finished the job. But we should point out, if the pilot hadnt made emergency landing, if navalny wasnt immediately brought to an icu unit, he would have been assassinated. Does the kremlin have anything to say about that . Well, no. And we have definitely spoken to a lot of experts, john, and they agree. Alexei navalny should be dead. And there are only two reasons that he is not dead. One of them, as you point out, is that plane was diverted to the city, it was supposed to be flying for another three hours. And also, when he landed in omsk, there were medics on the tarmac. They had atropine, a lifesaving antidote. That is why he is alive and that is not something president putin has addressed. So, putin also went out of his way to blame the United States and really your reporting, saying this was all u. S. Intelligence. This was a ruse used by the u. S. To cast blame on russia. How typical is that, of the russians, to Say Something like that to try to muddy the waters . That is pretty typical, particularly, with Alexei Navalny. They are really trying to cultivate the narrative that he is not truly russian. That he is in cahoots with westernintelligence sources. That he is a stooge, if you will, for the cia. And one other thing that was really telling, john, throughout this press conference and other press conferences we have heard putin give, where he is talked about navalny. He will never say navalnys name. Today, he referred to him simply as the patient in berlin. Talking about the hospital that he was transferred to in berlin. Another point, he called him the blogger. But he wont say his name. He wont allow him to be a person. And that, one can only assume, is because he views navalny as a legitimate threat. There is almost something pathological act tha pathological about that. Any sense how your reporting and this press conference is being received by the russian people . Its extraordinary because honestly, its been radio silence. There hasnt even been the usual, Propaganda Campaign against us. Its just been no one talking about it, except for some independent journalists. There are quite a few of them here. They are incredibly brave. The work they do. They can get into a lot more trouble than we can for speaking out. But for the most part, everyone seems to be trying to turn a blind eye to it. Even president putin. Yes, he answered a couple questions about it. But he was also almost dismissive of it. Its not a big deal. Move on. If we wanted to kill him, hed be dead. Clarissa, i have to say this is incredible reporting. It just keeps on going. Thank you so much for the incredible work you are doing and thanks for being with us tonight. Thanks, john. A lot more to get to, including a conversation with ohio governor, mike dewine, a republican, about his partys continued resistance to president elect bidens victory. And the surprise news, tonight, that some states will be getting less vaccine this year than originally thought. And later, a cnn investigation into accusations florida Governor Ron Desantis downplayed the pandemic and misrepresented the number of reported dead near election day. All that, when 360 continues. Together with a dedicated advisor, youll make a plan that can adjust as your life changes, with access to taxsmart investing strategies that help you keep more of what you earn. And with brokerage accounts, you see what youll pay before you trade. Personalized advice. Unmatched value. At fidelity, you can have both. More than this at fidelity, you can have both. 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With joe biden and Kamala Harris taking office in just about a months time, several prominent republicans still have not wrapped their arms around that inevitability. Mitch mcconnell has privately warned his republicans not to interfere with the final congressional approval or counting of the Electoral College results. Some senators are pressing ahead with complaints. Listen to missouri senator josh hawley at a hearing yesterday with remarks he said were reflective of some of his constituents. Every win of them told me that they felt they had been disenfranchised, that their votes didnt matter, that the election had been rigged. These are normal, reasonable people. These are not crazy people. These are reasonable people and who, by the way, have been involved in politics. Theyve won. Theyve lost. Theyve seen it all. These are normal folks living normal lives who firmly believe that they have been disenfranchised. Arguably its the kind of rhetoric that has exacerbated passions of the legitimacy the election. Here to discuss, mike dewine. Governor dewine, we appreciate your time. Senator hawley uses this circular logic. He says there are so many people, so Many Republican voters, who say they think there was fraud. Its because people like josh hawley and President Trump are out there screaming florirom th rooftops every day that there was widespread fraud. Yet in the courtroom, they havent presented any kind of evidence thats been convincing in any way. So whats the takeaway . Well, john, ive said all through this that i think we should trust our systems. We should trust our judicial system. The president had every right to go into court. His campaign had every right to go into court. Courts do a good job discerning what the facts are and what the law is. The same way we should trust our election system. And i think what should come out of this is people should say, look, this works. The system has worked. Look, we have acrimonious campaigns. Weve had them in the past. Well have them in the future. But in the end, americans do this pretty well. Weve done it for a long time. We know how to have a peaceful transfer of power. We know how to accept elections and get ready to go fight again. Thats what you do when you lose an election. Ive lost a couple myself. So i think rather than, you know, worrying about the system, the system has worked, and its worked very well this time. It works well. You know, theres flaws. Theyre mistakes. Theres things that happen. But by and large, we do it pretty well in this country, and we should, you know, accept that and be glad of that. What have the courts and the system said just to be clear . Well, you saw the look, i mean courts make decisions. I cant keep track of all the different decisions. Look, they have been reported, and the Supreme Court finally, for all the people who thought that, you know, the trump appointees to the United States Supreme Court could not be trusted and frankly, we heard some of that look, they made a decision, and they made a decision. They called balls and strikes. They do what judges do, and they made a decision. So the system works. You know, i spend my day not worrying about that. I spend my day worrying about the coronavirus, which is spreading, you know, rapidly in the state of ohio. Weve got in our hospitals onefourth of every patient is a covid patient. Onethird of every patient in the icu is a covid patient, and frankly thats what my focus is on every day. I want to ask you about ohio and coronavirus in just one second, but i just want to ask one last question about the Republican Party in general. Mitt romney, senator romney, former governor romney, former president ial nominee mitt romney was saying the Republican Party is different now than the Republican Party that nominated him to be president in 2012. How different is it, do you think . Well, i dont know about that. I mean i just i dont know what to make of that statement. What i see is, at least in ohio but i think also across the country, you know, republicans are were winning in blue collar communities in ohio that ten years ago we didnt have any chance of winning. We would have laughed at the idea that we could have won in steubenville, ohio, or that we would have won jefferson county, belmont county. Were winning in those areas, and not only did the president win, but a lot of local republican officials won. So theres a thats the positive. The negative is, you know, were falling back in franklin county, in columbus. Were falling back in some suburbs. Were constantly i think both parties, you constantly try to appeal to voters and meet peoples needs. And thats what were trying to do. I dont want to cut you off, but i do want to talk about coronavirus. Sure. Weve heard reports that some states are being told they wouldnt get as much of the Pfizer Vaccine as they expected. What are you hearing on that front, and just give me a sense of what you want people in ohio to know in this week before christmas . Well, the good news is tomorrow morning, 7 30, we start vaccinating people in nursing homes, thank god. This is where weve seen the biggest number of people who have died. Whi we cant get them vaccinated soon enough. We started several days ago vaccinating people who are our frontline defenders. Were moving forward. Weve not heard any change in the amount from pfizer. Theyve delivered in fact they actually delivered more because were getting six and seven doses out of a fivedose. So were moving forward. Good. Governor dewine, thank you for being with us. We wish you the best of luck. Thanks, john. In these tough weeks dealing with the pandemic. The republican governor of another state won by President Trump taking a different approach. Ron desantis still intent on keeping as much of his state open as possible. Thats despite reporting the most new cases today since july. As we mentioned earlier, thats more than 13,000. Tonight there are questions surrounding just how forthright his government has been with the States Coronavirus data, specifically deaths reported near election day as the governor and trump loyalist tried to help secure the president s reelection. The details from cnns Senior Investigative correspondent drew griffin. Hey, ron, how are we doing . Reporter in the weeks surrounding the november 3rd election, floridas department of health all but stopped reporting deaths that had taken place more than a month earlier, making overall death numbers appear much lower. Days after the election, the department went back to reporting those backlogged deaths as first reported by the sun sentinel newspaper. Why . The state isnt saying. But cnn has interviewed more than a dozen state officials and experts and finds Governor Ron Desantis administration has sidelined health experts, promoted questionable science, and left some county officials feeling muzzled from raising the alarm about rising cases. They are not necessarily at liberty to release all the information that they might want to release. Reporter dr. Eileen marty, an Infectious Disease expert at Florida International University Says the governors approach to the virus has made it worse. Its counterproductive. Is it also deadly . It leads people towards behavior that increases transmission. Bottom line, it leads to more deaths. Reporter in recent weeks, Governor Ron Desantis has defiantly kept restaurants and bars open, joined a maskless crowd tweeting this picture from a High School Football game, and scoffed at the notion of more governmentmandated shutdowns no matter how bad the virus. If they want to shut down businesses, im going to stand in the way. Reporter what he has rarely done is mention the 20,000 floridians who have died or the more than 1 million who have been infected, seemingly, say critics, to downplay the virus, keep floridas economy open in an effort to win an election for one person. Were with the governor of florida, ron desantis, whos done a spectacular job in florida. Hes doings a miserable job. Reporter the governors executive order has prevented county officials and mayors like carlos hernandez, the republican mayor of hialeah, from enforcing local mask regulations or other restrictions that could have slowed the virus spread. Maybe he has a number in mind thats its okay for that number of people to die but i think theres a lot more that we could be doing as a state. Reporter instead, state experts say Desantis Administration controls the messaging about the response. All of those decisions are made in tallahassee, and i suspect that the governors office. Reporter two department of health i does tell cnn in late september they were told to not focus on covid19 in their public messaging. Both workers, who asked not to be named, said they were afraid of being fired. Were putting politics in front of lives, one said. And sure enough, the states public messages about coronavirus almost entirely vanished. The Florida Department of healths website and social media accounts used to be filled with covid information and advice. But on september 25th, the day the governor signed his order that fully reopened florida, all of that changed overnight. The tweets and facebook posts suddenly were about infant hearing loss, Carbon Monoxide poisoning, and the flu shot. Up until thursday, the department of healths website was filled with a weeks old image promoting National Diabetes awareness month, which was november. To find the latest news on covid19, you need to click on a link. The governor made up his mind about what the right thing to do was, found people who supported that and then went ahead. The problem it was kind of an all or nothing and undermined a lot of local efforts. Reporter floridas state Health Department refused to answer any questions. Drew griffin joins us now. Drew, whats going on here just seems to be governor desantis, as President Trump has done, treating a pandemic like a Divisive Political issue. Reporter no doubt, john. We talked to that one Health Official who said this is politics in front of lives. Today, john, over 100 deaths recorded in florida. 13,000 new covid cases. Thats the most daily caseload theyve had since july. The governor put out one tweet today, another one about High School Football. John. Drew griffin, thank you very much. Just as we leave hair this evening, some new numbers. 2,995 reported deaths so far today. Another grim count that is. Sadly not over. The news continues, so lets hand it over to chris for cuomo prime time. Thank you, john. Appreciate it. I am chris cuomo and welcome to prime time. We all know that we are under atta,

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