Transcripts For CNNW CNN Newsroom With Fredricka Whitfield 20201227

To hold a News Conference coming up at 5 00 eastern time, and of course well have that for you as it happens. Cnns natasha chen is near the scene of this Ongoing Police operation there in lebanon, tennessee, just about 25 miles outside of nashville, where theyre looking further into this suspicious vehicle. Shimon prokupecz is in downtown nashville. Also with me is cnn senior Law Enforcement analyst Andrew Mccabe joining us by phone. Natasha, let me begin with you and what is an active investigative scene here involving that suspicious vehicle. Reporter right, fred. Well, we just got here a few minutes ago, but i can tell you what this looks like here. Authorities have this roadblocked off. This is actually right at the entrance of a state park, cedars of lebanon state park. I just talked to someone who lives right on the other side of this barricade, and she says shes been stuck, unable to go home since about 11 30 this morning. She went to drop off her kids at church, and, you know, 20 minutes later, she comes back and cant get to her house. So this has been the scene for several, several hours. And at first, you know, people waiting here had no idea what was going on. But as we now know from a press release from Law Enforcement, they did receive a call at about 10 30 today of a white truck parked at a crosstown mall. Its about a 10, 15 minute drive from where we are right here, im told, from the people who live over here. And that it was playing similar audio to the truck involved in the Christmas Morning bombing at downtown nashville. From this standpoint right here, what we can see is a lot of Law Enforcement activity far down the road, far down this highway, and this is a pretty Rural Community here. Were seeing, you know, small communities, farm communities. This is, you know, near murphysboro, and near lebanon. So people here really have no idea whats going on. Theyve been watching this happen for hours. As youve seen from our affiliate footage, there has been, you know, bomb robots deployed here. So everybodys kind of watching and seeing whats happening. This truck seems to have made it from one county into another, so this is why there are multiple agencies here onscene working together to investigate this and make sure everyones safe, fred. And, na tasha, already multiple agencies there because just two days ago you had this Christmas Day blast bringing in atf, fbi, and local and state authorities. We have been able to see in this live picture provided by our affiliate, wsmb, that there is a robot there to further suspect this suspicious vehicle. All weve been able to see is that it would be on the side, seem to come in close, peer in, and then also toward the back. What do you know about, you know, the process or what other resources are there to further spec inspect this vehicle . Reporter all we can glean right now is from what we see from a far distance. So im just telling you what i can see from my own eyes here at a distance. I think that there are a lot of vehicles on both sides of the white truck, and i think you can see that from the aerials as well. But our affiliate, as you just mentioned, has footage of the robots that theyve deployed and also seeing people potentially suiting up to go near that truck. Of course this is something to be very careful about as they are reviewing how this might or might not be similar to what went on, on Christmas Morning. With that truck, all that is similar at this time is the report that it was playing audio similar to that truck. We dont know the specifics of what that audio was, whether it was the warning of a potential explosion or whether it was the song as we reported earlier today, the song playing at that downtown truck that truck located downtown was the song downtown by petula clark. A lot that were still going to ask in the hours ahead. Okay. So, you know, just extrapolating more, shimon, about the kinds of resources that are being used in this extension of the investigation now, we have been talking about how with this robot, it may have the ability to see inside a suspicious vehicle. It may have the ability to actually open doors sometimes as well. Then josh campbell, a cnn correspondent formerly of the fbi, who happens to be on vacation but sends me a message telling me about the other abilities of this robot. It also has the ability to have a High Pressure blast of water. Its capable of firing that water, potentially the goal being to separate any kind of wires from a power supply if there is Something Like that and any kind of explosive material. And sometimes when that is detonate, when the water is launched, it may render a big noise coming from a suspicious vehicle. But, again, we dont know what phase theyre in. What are you hearing from authorities about how they are continuing to, you know, peer into this vehicle, look at it, examine it, yet at the same time continue to follow many of the other leads, some 500 leads they talked about yesterday, with the nashville blast . Reporter right. And all of that, the capabilities of this robot, they can do a lot with that robot, but it doesnt mean theyre going to use any of those capabilities or theyre going to need to because right now we dont even know that theres anything that would require those capabilities. Clearly there is still something inside that truck that they want to get a better look at. You heard natasha talk about how she saw people putting suiting up, what appeared to be the bomb techs suiting up to possibly go closer to that truck to take a look at whats inside. So they send the robot in first with a camera. That robot will have a camera. They will be able to see inside that truck. Apparently i was watching some of our local reports, our affiliates, some of the local reports. They said they had seen that robot do it several times, like it was trying to open a door. So they may be trying to get inside that truck and see. But clearly theres enough in there that has raised some suspicious among the bomb technicians there and the officers and the investigators where they feel they need to go in there. Authorities here are not saying anything about whats going on there right now. We are expecting to hear from authorities here in about an hour. So perhaps they will address whats happening there. Right now we see no connection outside of the audio message thats being played. That, of course, is very concerning and what alerted someone to the police. It appears it was perhaps a 911 call around 10 30 this morning that brought officers to this truck. But, again, we just dont know enough about whats happening to make any kind of determine nation as to what police there are dealing with. Its important to know that really police all across the country are sort of on high alert for similar activity, perhaps copycat type of activity. So thats what were seeing here. People saw something. They picked up the phone, and they called. We know a lot of people across the country are paying attention to what happened here. Its, of course, very concerning. So for now, we know very little. But whatever is going on there, there is enough concern where authorities, as we see, theyre using a robot, and at some point it appears theyre going to go in and take a closer look at whats inside this truck. Then they may be use an x ray. They have equipment where they can xray if theres a suspicious box inside, if theres some suspicious bag or some kind of a suspicious package inside. The bomb techs will actually they have the capability to xray it. So thats why they want to suit up. They will go in and xray it and take a look and see what it is. The other significance here is this has been going on for several hours. This isnt something that just happened. So im curious as to why this has been going on for so long, and hopefully well get those answers. In this live picture right now, as you talked about a bomb tech, we were looking at an individual who seemed to have a protective suit that was right next to the robot, you know, right near that suspicious vehicle. Also with us is former Deputy Director of the fbi, Andrew Mccabe. Andrew, what strikes you as you look at these live pictures, this Ongoing Investigation of this suspicious vehicle, the robot being used, and what appears to be maybe a bomb tech or someone in a protective suit near it . How are they making an assessment, and what can you share with us . Well, frederica, what this looks like to me is a classic example of bythebook investigation of a suspicious vehicle, particularly in a time and a location where we have reason to believe that a similar device was used on Christmas Morning. I think its important to remember that bomb techs all across this country are all trained to exactly the same standards and processes and procedures. So theyre completely interchangeable. So you could put an fbi bomb tech on a team with a local police bomb tech, and they know the exact same procedures and equipment and ways to approach situations like this. And then, andrew, let me just interrupt you for a second because now were getting a different angle this time from our affiliate, which shows that suspicious vehicle from the rearend now with the back door open and at least one individual, protective gear, that has entered that vehicle. Now continue your thought or add to it based on these new images, if you would. Sure. So in those procedures, you always start with the things that are safest for the operators involved, and thats sending the robots as youve seen over the last couple of hours. The fact that we have a live bomb technician in the back of that truck right now indicates that they sent the robots up. They got a look inside. Either they werent able to get inside or they were able to see in, and they just couldnt determine what they had with the robot. That means youve got to elevate things, and youve actually got to put people on that scene. Of course they do that from inside those incredibly protective suits. And typically you would have one bomb tech, and now it looks like things are being tossed out of that vehicle. Of course difficult to discern what that is in this live view right now. But typically would you have one bomb tech, or might there be another that could have entered before we were able to see this live view . You know, youd usually send one person up first to get a look at the situation. If theres a lot of debris or material in there that needs to be moved that requires two people rather than one, then theyd send another person out. But youd never want to put more people on that scene than you absolutely need because its an incredibly risk and dangerous thing to do. You can see in this shot, there is so much debris or material in the back of that truck that to determine what they have, they really have to theyre going to have to sort through every piece of equipment and, you know, stuff, whatever is in the back of that truck is going to have to get pulled out and very carefully taken apart to make sure theres not something in there that can hurt anyone. What were seeing right now is really the consequence of many hours, as shimon was telling us, from when the first call came in. So for many hours, theyve had to make their assessments, use the robot before. Now were seeing for the first time a bomb tech thats actually entered that vehicle. Again, Ongoing Investigation about this suspicious vehicle just about 30 miles outside of downtown nashville, now just two days after an rv exploded in downtown nashville. Thanks to all of you. Well check back with you as we continue to do more reporting on this investigation. All right. On to covid now. The worst may be yet to come as dr. Anthony fauci warns of postholiday covid surge. Many americans are facing financial crisis after trump refuses to sign a bill extending Unemployment Benefits. Details on all of that next. These days you need more than an education. So thats what we give you. Introducing Career Services for life. Learn more at phoenix. Edu millions of americans are set to enter the new year on the brink of financial crisis. President trump spending the morning at one of his golf courses while delaying a decision to sign or veto a 900 billion relief package passed by Congress Just days ago. Lets get straight to cnns Jeremy Diamond who is in West Palm Beach traveling with the president. Jeremy, any new indication from the president on what hes going to do . Reporter no indication other than the fact that the president continues to complain about this 900 billion Coronavirus Relief legislation. Of course it would have made more sense for the president to complain about the legislation before it was passed. That is when his administration, treasury secretary steve mnuchin, was supposedly negotiating with congressional negotiators on the president s behalf. The president , though, was completely on the sidelines and didnt interject to try and get those 2,000 payments instead of the 600 which mnuchin and his administration approved of. And so now it has been five days since the president made that threat to torpedo that legislation, and we dont know whether he will sign it, whether he will veto it, or whether he will simply allow this legislation to continue to languish. What we do know, though, is that this is plunging millions of americans, tens of millions of americans deeper into financial uncertainty. Whether its those unemployed americans who lost this weekend, those supplemental federal Unemployment Benefits or the americans who are counting on that 600 check to be coming next week, or even the millions of businesses that were counting on more ppp loan funding. All of that in limbo has the president continues this, and that is what senator pat toomey, a republican from pennsylvania, was warning of just this morning. Listen. As he leaves office, he will i understand he wants to be remembered for advocating for big checks, but the danger is hell be remembered for chaos and misery and erratic behavior if he allows this to expire. So i think the best thing to do, as i say, sign this and then make the case for subsequent legislation. So we talked about the fact that more than 12 million americans already lost supplemental Unemployment Benefits this weekend. More pain could soon be on the way for more americans if the president doesnt sign this legislation by tuesday because that would trigger another Government Shutdown in the middle of a pandemic. And of course it is just damning to be watching these images of the president of the United States golfing three days this past week amid this financial uncertainty for tens of millions of americans in the middle of this Holiday Season and the pandemic raging at the same time. Fred. All right. Jeremy diamond, thank you so much. So the president s delay is having real impact on millions of jobless americans who are depending on these crucial benefits to make ends meet. Joining me right now to discuss all of this is lily rain, a Small Business owner in North Carolina who has lost much of her business. Shes depleted her savings since the start of this pandemic. And, lily, so good to see you. Good to see you too. So you struck me with your story on npr, you know, saying that youve got 4 in your account, and youd wondered if the president or members of congress have any idea what that feels like, you know, as they try to figure out whether americans should get, you know, 600, 2,000, whatever the amount, if they should get a dime at all in all of this. So have you heard from any of these leaders, you know, from congress or, you know, anyone who can empathize, who will say anything to you at this juncture . I dont feel that any of them are reaching people like me. I honestly feel that were struggling, and they have no idea what its like. Theyll talk about 600 being a lot while wearing a dress that costs 2,400 or more. They have no idea. So your pet sitting business was thriving before this pandemic. You felt like you had achieved financial security, and you were saving up to hopefully, you know, by a home. You felt confident about where you were, and then everything came crashing down with this pandemic. Tell me what this road has been like for you. This road has been really rough for me. Like i still have an occasional regular or two that go out of town, but im not doing like i said, my basic things. I dont get to walk dogs. I dont even get to go feed dogs because everyones home right now, and those that arent home arent traveling anyway. Its been like a lot to deal with. Essentially for me, my daytoday is gone, and a lot of my daytoday is now sitting at home waiting for this to be over. Youve had to lean on a lot of Family Members. Have you been feeling like how long can they continue to help you . Absolutely. And how humiliating, you know, that is and can be. Its not just my Family Members. Like my friends got together and donated 70 last month so i could pay my phone bill not my phone bill, sorry, my electric bill. And thats, to me, devastating. Im an difficult, andadult, and have to rely on anyone but myself. I know youre really grateful because youve got people who love you and around you who want to help as best they can. But when you look at closing out 2020 and you look at entering a new year, do you see any signs of being hopeful . I am hopeful that this vaccine helps. Im hopeful that that happens and that, like, the people that i know will take it so i can go back to work, and a lot of those people will. But i do know several people who are scared to death of it and wont take it, and that leaves me really nervous and really shaky. Im not looking that forward to 2021. Yeah. Congress passed, you know, legislation promising 600 in relief. The president says he wants more. He wants 2,000. Still unclear whether he will sign this bill or veto it. We know hes an avid tv watcher. If he is watching right now, lilli, what do you say directly to the president or members of congress . Honestly just pass the 600. We can fight for more later. But right now 600 gets two bills off my back or some of my Credit Card Debt paid down so the interest wont kill me in 2021. Like just pass something. There are people like my mother who need that. Lilli, were hoping the best for you, all of america who are suffering, who are struggling right now and who are hoping for better days. Thank you. Thanks so much for being with us. Thank you, lilli. Thank you. Europe launches its Mass Vaccination Program. Up next, a live report on the vaccine efforts, plus details on a 91yearold grandfather who went viral on social media after receiving his first dose. L i fot actually was. Dust mite droppings . Ewww. Dead skin cells . Gross so now, i grab my swiffer heavy duty sweeper and dusters. Dusters extends to 6 feet to reach way up high. To grab, trap and lock away gross dust. Nice for dust on my floors, i switch to sweeper. The heavy duty cloths reach deep in grooves to grab, trap and lock dust bunnies. No matter where they hide. No more heebie jeebies. Phhhhew. Glad i stopped cleaning and started swiffering. People are saving hundreds in a land not so far away, on the most Reliable Network with xfinity mobile. They can choose from the latest phones or bring their own. And because they get nationwide 5g at no extra cost, they live happily ever after. Again again your wireless. Your rules. Your way to stay closer together this Holiday Season. Switch and save up to 400 a year on your wireless bill. And get 150 off when you buy a samsung a series phone. Learn more at xfinitymobile. Com. All right. The u. S. Just reached a terrible milestone. More than 19 million cases of covid19 have been reported. That number is expected to get even worse as millions of americans travel and spread the virus during the christmas and new years holidays. Dr. Anthony fauci warns a postholiday surge is coming. Were really at a very critical point. If you put more pressure on the system by what might be a postseasonal surge because of the traveling and the likely congregating of people for, you know, the good, warm purposes of being together for the holidays, its very tough for people to not do that. And yet even though we advise not to, its going to happen. So i share the concern of president elect biden that as we get into the next few weeks, it might actually get worse. Im joined now by dr. Daria long. Shes an Emergency Room Physician and a clinical assistant professor at the university of tennessee. So good to see you. So how big do you think this postholiday surge will be . Fred, this is something we all need to be worried about. Im working with a couple of schools. Weve been testing everybody, and we saw right after thanksgiving a huge bump in the number of cases, which were now seeing in the community. So when you think about it, thanksgiving has one day for everyone to get together. These christmas and winter holidays have multiple days for people to get together. I really think were going to see a big bump. And as dr. Fauci said, i have concerns about the capacity after that bump. Are you concerned that, you know, people made the choices to travel because they thought, all right, well, theres this vaccine, and thats hopeful. So soon things will get better, so im ready to relax things a bit . Right. I think youre right. I think people are seeing the vaccine ahead of us and saying that means i can relax now. Thats kind of like saying, im going to get air bags in my car so i can start driving less carefully now. We need to see that vaccine as hope, which is why we can hang on and stick to these protocols for safety longer because the end is in sight. We just have to get there. You live and work in tennessee, you know. Its high on the list now of states overrun with coronavirus. How are you and your colleagues going to meet the need . Thats a big question. Thats something i ask myself every day in the e. R. My fellow colleagues. Tennessee is currently number seven in terms of number of cases per million. Interestingly, fredricka, we still dont have a mask mandate, which is one of the simple things we could do to keep people safer. We saw this potential explosion in nashville. The question is when you have all of your hospital beds used up for koicovid, where do we go when we have a trauma or potentially a mass casualty incident . This is something Everybody Needs to be thinking about. How frustrating is it for you that it might take a mask mandate as opposed to at this juncture, after these many months, if the message hasnt already hit home with people about how a mask can certainly help, i mean if theres no mandate, you feel like people are just not going to take personal responsibility . I think humans are humans, and i think people are tired of having to wear masks and do all these different things, which is why i do think its important to have a mask mandate. Ive talked to Business Owners, who say, we wish there were a mask mandate because we wear a mask. We make our employees wear a mask. We ask our customers to wear masks, but theres no mandate. And it makes it harder for Business Owners who want to stay hope and they want to stay safe. So, yes, theres a time for government to come in and make some regulations, and this is one of them. I know you mentioned earlier its okay for people to feel hopeful about the vaccine, but where do you find how do you find hope for 2021 . You know, fred, working as an e. R. Doctor, you do. You always have to find a way to stay hopeful and see that light at the end of the tunnel, and i think its in the small things. For me as an e. R. Doctor, it is in those small wins. It is in the small things we can look forward, the vaccine coming into play, the things that we will be able to get back to in 2021. 2021 is not going to look like 2020, and that should give all us of a great deal of hope. Lets hope not, right . Definitely ready to bid a deux to 2020. All right. Dr. Darria long, thank you so much. Happy new year. Thanks. You too as well. Thank you. The European Unions Mass Vaccination Program is under way right now. Nursing homes across europe are getting the first shots. The plan calls for the vaccination of 450 Million People across the 27nation bloc. Cnns cyril vanier joining us from paris. Cyril, how is this rollout being received . Reporter fred, as of this sunday, it really is a race, isnt it, between the virus and the vaccine . Now, the virus, as we know, has a massive head start, but you cant understate the importance of this day for the European Union, just starting to turn a corner, and its a massive logistical effort, as you said, across 27 countries from greece to the Czech Republic to france. Heres what it looked like on sunday. First, the caretaker, then one of the most vulnerable. Thats how greece began the process of distributing its first doses of a covid19 vaccine. Today marks the first day of the countdown to take our lives back, the Greek Health Minister says. The hope resounding throughout the European Union as member countries roll out their own vaccination programs. Two doses for each citizen. Inoculations that will stretch well into next year but could one day potentially vanquish the virus that has so far killed nearly 1. 8 Million People worldwide. Residents in a retirement home in germany were among the first to get the shots. One 85yearold welcoming the possibility of a sore arm. We want to see our families again, she says. Thats the most important thing. And to be able to go out again. The eu is due to get 12. 5 million doses of the Pfizer Biontech vaccine by the end of the year, and its expecting more, which along with contracts from Companies Including moderna and astrazeneca should add up to a total of more than 2 billion doses of potential vaccines if Companies Keep up with demand. In the Czech Republic, the first shots given to the Prime Minister to encourage skeptics that its safe. Polls show many europeans are wary of taking a covid19 vaccine, at least for now. One man says, i think its been a bit quick for it to be really effective, but we will have to see how it works. That reluctance not shared by officials in hungary and slovakia, who are so eager to begin vaccinating that they started a day early on saturday. Some countries are even calling up retired medics and revising rules on who can give injections to prevent any logistical delays. In this town in italy, once the epicenter of the pandemic in europe, a sight almost unthinkable nearly ten months ago. Vehicles carrying vials of vaccine, a light at the end of the tunnel that so many across europe did not live to see. And, fredricka, the united kingdom, you might remember, is a little bit ahead of this curve because they started vaccinating their population some three weeks ago, earlier this month. At the time i was covering that rollout, and i interviewed 91yearold british granddad martin kenyan, who was one of the very first britons to get the vaccine. And his interview just blew up. It went viral. People really responded to his dry wit, his humor, and lets face it, his bluntness. So i caught up with him. Heres martin kenyan then and now. Didnt hurt at all. I didnt know the needle had gone in until it had come out. No, it was painless. I hope im not going to have the bloody bug now. I dont intend to have it because ive got granddaughters and i want to live a long time. Ten days of notoriety is more than ive of in my life. And im very old for it to happen now. Very ridiculous. All because i rang up the hospital and went off there. Reporter so, look, it is totally in character for martin to be absolutely nonplussed by this fame that he had. He was on every tv show in the uk. He was covered by every print media as well. Look, the serious news here is that hes had no side effects to his vaccine, that he is feeling great, that he is scheduled to have his booster jab within a few days, which means that a week after that, by early january, his body will have developed immunity. Hell be one of the first people in the western world to be immune to the covid19. Fred. I remember that interview. You did such a great job with him. I mean it stopped me in my tracks. He was arresting. He was so snappy, and i love that he called that bloody bug, you know, something that he is glad the vaccine will help stamp out. That was cool. Cyril vanier, thank you so much in paris. We like that martin kenyon. This breaking news out of nashville. We are on the scene live as officials investigate a box truck that Authorities Say witnesses thought they heard similar audio that was played in the rv on Christmas Day before it exploded in downtown nashville. The very latest next. So with at t, you can pick the perfect plan for each Family Member with the features they want, like hbo max. What was that . Happens every time i say hbo max. Hbo max. It can read . Its not complicated. At ts best plan includes hbo max so you can stream wonder woman 1984 the exact same day it premieres in theaters, at no extra cost. Georgia is the ultimate swing state this year. It played a prominent role in deciding the white house, and a week from tuesday, it will decide control of the u. S. Senate. That means georgia voters are more important than ever. So lets now talk to the individual who runs the new georgia product, a Voting Rights group in atlanta. Shes the founder of the new south superpac, which is supporting Raphael Warnock and ossoff in the Upcoming Senate races. Lets talk about what you are doing and how you are going about this, and if you are seeing right now any way to read the tea leaves in the kind of outpouring of early voting that there has been. Right. I mean im not particularly a betting woman, but what i know is that, you know, conventional political wisdom told us that turnout for runoffs is historically lower than turnout in general elections. There was a lot of handwringing immediately after the november general about whether or not georgians would show up again, how voter fatigue would have an impact on turnout. Would we be able to turn people out over thanksgiving and christmas and new years . And all of that hasnt stopped georgia voters from showing up. Over 2 Million People have early voted, which is over 90 of the people who early voted by this same point in the november general election. So it is clear to me. What i can read in the tea leaves is that georgia voters understand the power of their vote in this moment and that they understand that theres an opportunity to demonstrate that georgia is indeed a battleground state. So, nse, i wonder too if theres any way of indicating how the president s approach to this covid relief bill that congress has approved but he has yet to sign, nor, you know, definitively veto whether theres any way in determining how that might impact the potential outcome of this race. Right. I think it will encourage more people to show up and vote. The 600 that was being offered wasnt nearly enough on its own, and now the president has inserted more chaos and confusion into the process, and its not clear that the 2,000 that hes advocating for will actually happen. And so we are encouraging georgians to, one, make sure that they turn up and vote and, two, call their legislators, their current members of the senate and of the house and demand that at the very least, they make sure that the 600 gets into the hands of american families, again, despite the fact that we all agree that its nowhere near enough. And as it pertains to, you know, turnout and i know you talked a little bit about that, you know, the expectations are usually low about a runoff election. But this one seems to be different. This isnt your ordinary runoff. Theres a lot at stake. The whole balance of power in the u. S. Senate, and this with an incoming, you know, president who is a democrat. Hes got the house, you know, as a democrat, but whether the senate ends up being republican or democrat very much hinges on this runoff race. So do you think that has given greater impetus, whether youre republican or democrat, to turn out unlike other runoff races in georgia . I do. I think the stakes are extraordinarily high and that as a part of so were about a couple of days away from knocking on our 1 millionth door, from making our 3 millionth phone call and the same number of Text Messages to georgia voters. So in addition to sort of basic civics lessons about what a runoff is, why this runoff matters, you know, weve been fielding a lot of questions. The thing that i dont think its enough coverage is about the youth turnout. You know, these voters that are born in 2002, 2001, and are voting for the first time. Yeah. And they have seen the power of their vote. So folks have a lot of questions about process, and weve got an opportunity to do, again, civics education, civics 101 in really cool and interesting ways, and people are responding. And theyre showing up, and theyre voting. And so i think, yes, the stakes are high, and people know it. Theres nothing that focuses the mind like the credible threat of death, and we have experienced a lot of death in georgia as many have in other states. Over 300,000, you know, americans are no longer with us, and so it has focused the mind, and people are showing up as a result of it. Well, im smiling not theres nothing to smile about when you talk about covid deaths, but im smiling because your enthusiasm is contagious, and you are very enthusiastic about this runoff race and clearly already a lot of georgia voters are too. Nse ufot, thank you so much, of the new georgia project. Appreciate your time. Thank you. Next, breaking news. Sheriffs deputies are investigating another truck where witnesses say audio similar to that audio played in that rv before it exploded in downtown nashville, they thought they heard it out of this truck as well. Were expecting an update from authorities at the top of the hour. Well take you there live. When a hailstorm hit, he needed his insurance to get it done right, right away. Usaa. What youre made of, were made for. Usaa some things are good to know. Like where to find the cheapest gas in town and which supermarket gives you the most bang for your buck. Something else thats good to know . 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This truck apparently, according to eyewitnesses, through authorities, was playing a similar audio that was played on that rv that exploded on Christmas Day in nashville, tennessee. Authorities are also now saying they have identified a person of interest in connection with the Christmas Day explosion. Were expecting to hear authorities have a press conference coming up at 5 00 eastern time, and of course well bring that for you live as it happens. Meantime, cnns natasha chen is near the scene of where authorities are investigating that suspicious vehicle. What more can you tell us, natasha, and Shimon Prokupecz also with us in downtown nashville. But first to you, natasha. Reporter yeah, fred. Just a few minutes ago, captain scott moore with the Wilson County Sheriffs Office told us there were no explosives found at that suspicious white box truck. Again, no explosives found. They did detain the driver of that truck. He would not go into detail about why they detained him, said that would be information coming from the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office because thats where the initial call came in that this truck was parked at a convenience store, playing a recording similar to the audio that we heard from the rv at the downtown nashville Christmas Morning explosion. So thats why they were looking into this truck to begin with. And they pulled this truck over earlier today, about midmorning, in this area which local residents tell me is called major, the town of major near lebanon. This has been going on for hours, but right now this highway, 231, is reopening soon. Weve seen many of the law vehicles actually leave the scene, so only a few left. And they pulled the white box truck they towed it out of the area, out of the barricaded area, actually to the far side away from us. So we know that its been taken away now, and again a driver detained. No details yet on what he was detained on. We hope to get those details soon, fred. All right. And Shimon Prokupecz in downtown nashville where this briefing will happen in a matter of minutes there, whats being expected . Reporter significant announcement here is expected within about ten minutes or so from authorities here. The fbi is going to be here. The u. S. Attorney, the atf, the police chief here. So all of the agencies that have been involved in this investigation will be appearing here to address the media. We do expect a significant announcement here from authorities as they all gather here around 5 00. Of course as weve been reporting, the police chief here publicly naming the suspected bomber. His name is Anthony Quinn warner, 63. What weve been told is that the human remains that were found here, authorities do believe that those human remains are warners, and so theyve been working off of that theory. We know that yesterday, where we were, where cnn was yesterday at the home of mr. Warner, they gathered evidence there, including dna. Theyre also gathering dna from his Family Members to try and positively identify him. So for now that is what were waiting for. Were waiting for police to update us to see if theyve made this identification. They do tell me that they are going to make a significant announcement here in just about ten minutes or so. All right. Shimon prokupecz, natasha chen, well check back with you momentarily. Thank you so much because, again, Just Moments Away now from the start of that News Conference in downtown nashville where officials are expected to give an update on that Christmas Day rv explosion. Of course well bring that to you as it happens. Well be right back. Investing today wherever you are even hanging with your dog. So, what are you waiting for . Download now and get your first stock on us. Robinhood. Sprinting past every leak in our softest, smoothest fabric. Shes confident, protected, her strength respected. Depend. The only thing stronger than us, is you. All right. With this last show of the year, we want to take time to thank the heroes who have walked among us, who have sacrificed so much to help keep as many of us safe in this year of extreme challenge. So thank you to the doctors, nurses, so many First Responders unable to ever really take a break. Thanks to the workers in the field and the factories, grocery stores, who have risked their health to feed our families and seemingly getting so little in return. And thank you so teachers. And thanks to all of your families who are also helping to support you to help keep society afloat. And thanks to the volunteers who have stepped up for so many of our communities. And of course we want to thank you at home too for being engaged, for wanting to get your sustenance of information from this network and from so many periodicals and so many other news outlets. Thanks for doing your part. Thanks for taking the responsibility that it takes to help keep all of us safe. And let us all hold hands and hope that 2021 is going to bring enlightenment, better days, and better hope for all of us. Weve got so much more straight ahead in the newsroom. Stay with us. Im fredricka whitfield. Thank you so much. Happy holidays and a happy new year. Announcer this is cnn breaking news. You are live in the cnn newsroom. Im amara walker in for ana cabrera. We are following breaking news right now from nashville where an urgent investigation into that massive Christmas Morning explosion has produced a list of new developments. Cnns Shimon Prokupecz has been there from the start. Shimon, we are waiting for a News Conference that will happen at any minute now. What are we expected to hear . Reporter so we just got our oneminute warning here, so thats going to get started in about a minute. A significant announcement, were told, from authorities here that are all all of the people who have been investigating this are going to be at this press conference the u. S. Attorney, the fbi, the atf, the police chief here, folks from the state police and homeland security. All are going to be here with what im told is a significant announcement. Of course as weve been reporting, the suspected bomber, Anthony Quinn warner, who is 63, is believed to have died in this incident as a suicide bombing, and the human remains that were found, authorities believe belong to warner. Theyve been working to match that human the human remains to dna. They were talking to Family Members. And also, remember, they were at his home yesterday to try and get that dna. And i understand the press conference is about to start, so im going to get out of the way. Good afternoon. Im jason pack. Im the special agent and Public Affairs officer with the fbi, knoxville field office. Behind me we have the heads of agencies responsible for the work youve seen going on these past 48 hours. Speaking today will be donald cochran, United States attorney for the middle district of tennessee. David roush, direct over of the Tennessee Bureau of investigation. Doug corneski, special agent in charge of the fbis memphis field office. Mickey french, special agent in charge of the bureau of alcohol, tobacco, firearms nashville division. John drake, chief of police, Metro Nashville police. At this time ill turn it over to United States attorney