To fail, leaving millions of americans who cant afford to put food on their table or pay rent out in the cold. And the president of the United States couldnt care less. While the senate plays games with covid aid, he is golfing yes, golfing again. Ive said it before that this president isnt even doing the job he is trying so hard to keep. Compare that to the president elect, joe biden, telling americans what we need to hear about the virus that as of tonight has killed more than 338,000 americans. But we need to be honest, the next few weeks and months are going to be very tough, very tough period for our nation, maybe the toughest during this entire pandemic. I know its hard to hear, but its the truth. So, the current president , when he actually daned to talk about the virus thats killing us, something he has avoided for months, just throwing around empty promises and claiming that were rounding the corner like his empty words would fool anybody. It would go away without the vaccine, george, but its going to go away a lot faster with it. It will go away, and as i say, were rounding the turn. Were rounding the corner. This thing goes away and it is going away. Its rounding the turn. Rounding the turn, going away, right . Biden pointing out the obvious fact that operation warp speed is way behind said yul with about 2. 1 million shots in arms not even close to the 20 million promised by new years day. The Trump Administrations plan to distribute vaccines is falling behind, far behind. And the pace of the Vaccination Program is moving now as it if it continues to move as it is now, its going to take years, not months, to vaccinate the american people. Remember when the current president hinted there would be a vaccine before election day . Were going to have a vaccine very soon, maybe even before a special day. You know what date im talking about. Well, he was all too happy to take credit then, remember before election day. Thats because he wanted to get elected. He was giving people false hope really. Well, now hes trying to blame the states like he has throughout this pandemic. That as biden is calling for more testing and calling on congress to act quickly. Need to scale up testing so anyone who needs one can get a test. After 10 months of the pandemic we still dont have enough testing. Its a travesty. All this, vaccinations, testing, protective gear is going to require for funding from congress, more than we just approved. Thats why ill propose a covid action package early next year and challenge congress to act on it quickly. But who could forget this kidding not kidding demand from the current president for less testing . You do testing to that extent youre going to find more people. Youre going to find more cases. So, i said to my people, slow the testing down, please he actually wow. Remember he actually said that. So, all he has to do is listen to the contrast between biden calling on trump to promote mask wearing and trump well, listen. I hope the president will also clearly unambiguously promote mask wearing. I give former governor Chris Christie credit. He and i disagreed in a number of things, but im thankful hes now encouraging people to do the right things and wear masks for themselves, their loved ones and their country. I hope that President Trump will listen to him. Somehow sitting in the oval Office Behind that beautiful resolute desk, the Great Resolute desk, i think wearing a face mask as a great president , prime minister, dictators, kings, queens, i dont know somehow i dont see it for myself. Well, one of these two is the adult in the room, telling hard truths about what we all have to do to get through this pandemic, and the other is living in a fantasy land. We need to steel our spines for whats ahead. We need to follow more closely the recommendations to slow the spread of the virus. And each of us needs to do what we can to protect ourselves, our families and our fellow americans. I said supposing you brought the light inside the body, which you can do either through the skin or in some other way. And i think you said youre going to test that too. Sounds interesting. And then i see the disinfectant knocks it out in a minute, one minute. And is there a way we can do Something Like that by injection inside or cleaning. You see it gets in the lungs. One day were going to look back and say wow, that actually happened . And youll say, i lived through that, the fortunate ones who have not succumb to covid. 22 days. Just about three weeks left in this president s disastrous term. Hes not even trying to hide the fact that hes completely abdicated his responsibilities as president. While americans are dying, hes throwing temper tantrums, playing golf. Wa, crying, wa, wa, they stole the election from me, other leaders, not me. Of course. Im prothetic. Senior republican telling cnn the president s tweets are, and im quoting, the ravings of a deposed king. The president lashing out at his own party in the senate, recklessly tweeting that they must have a death wish. Throwing a tantrum over renovations at his beloved maralago. Sounds like extreme make over trump home edition. Its not going too well. The president was so mad about the renovations he demanded the white marble and dark wood decor be scrapped right away. That source says the president has been moody and spending most of his time behind closed doors. Well, not all of his time. Like i said, while americans are dying, this president is golfing. He was on the links at his own Trump International golf club in West Palm Beach just this morning. You want to look . There you go. Look at your screen. Food lines, hospitals full, Record Numbers of deaths from covid, and this is the 425th day at one of his own properties and the 312th day at one of his golf clubs during his presidency. Thats according to cnns count. Hm. Not a good look for a president who complained over and over and over about his predecessors golfing. Obama, it was reported today, played 250 rounds of golf. Everythings executive order because he doesnt have enough time because hes playing so much golf. Obama ought to get off the golf course and get down there. If im going to be working for you, im not going to have time to play golf. He played more golf than tiger woods. This guy plays more golf than people on the pga tour. I dont have time. If i were in the white house i dont think i would ever see it again. I dont think i would ever see doral again. Im not going to be playing much golf. Believe me, if i win this, im not going to be playing much golf. I dont know what you call it. Well, lying. Hypocrisy. Hubris. Entitlement, privilege. All of the above. Rantings, ravings. Like i said, just 22 days left in this president s disastrous term and the man who will take the oath of office come january 20th says this. Were in this together. And the actions we take now are going to help us contain the pandemic and get us back to our lives and to our loved ones. So, the american people, to all of you, i know theres a lot that we have to do. But i want you to know theres also much we can do. Were the United States of america. Weve been through hard times before as a nation, and well come through this as well. I promise you we will. The president elect. The current, though, golfing, lashing out at his own party, doing pretty much anything other than dealing with the pandemic thats killed americans, killing americans. That as president elect joe biden sets a goal of 1 million vaccinations a day and Vice President elect Kamala Harris gets her shot. That was easy. Well be right back. 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Book your free virtual or inhome Design Consultation today. Breaking news is a Record Number of newly reported coronavirus deaths in this country tonight. 3,708 american lives lost. And the day isnt even over yet. So, were experiencing mass deaths every single day, but President Trump seems to be ignoring this crisis and blaming others for his own administrations mistakes. I want to bring in cnn White House Correspondent john harwood and charlie dent. Gentlemen, good to see you. I appreciate it so much. John, this pandemic is getting worse, more dire by the minute. Is the president doing anything to actually deal with this crisis, or is he just blaming others . The latter. Look, this is a president who has basically walked away from the job of containing the coronavirus pandemic over the last several months. Hes down in maralago. Hes playing golf. Hes sending out tweets, being angry at the Senate Majority leader Mitch Mcconnell for having said that joe biden is the president elect, making false claims about election fraud, all sort of things except for effectively running the vaccine rollout, which is behind schedule, and trying to do something to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. The spread, which is continuing virtually unabated. Look, to be a good president , youve got to care about the problems, the setting, the people that you represent and be able to lead and marshall the resources of the federal government to do something about them. Donald trump doesnt have the empathy, the smarts, the leadership ability to do those things. And thats why hes not a good president and thats why he was defeated in the election. When you think about, charlie, when you think about exactly what is how many people have died, right, and whats at stake here, it should not be partisan at all. More than 338,000 americans have died from this virus. Millions are struggling to just make ends meet financially, and the president is spending his 425th day at a trump property, his 312 day golfing. I mean, this is crazy. Why arent republicans just screaming and yelling, i mean, because he is the person who is representative of the party right now. Why arent they screaming . The optics are terrible. Well, yeah, the optics are terrible and the president doesnt seem to care. Hes clearly checked out some time ago. Hes really demonstrated very little interest into the mechanics of governing. You think a president , after theyve done a pretty good job developing a vaccine that they would be concerned about the distribution, that they would want to make it work and the president would be putting his should tore the wheel to make sure things go even smoother, but hes not. I dont think hes interested. He doesnt like the job. He doesnt like getting into the weeds of the policy and actually making government work. This is never what hes been about. So, i think republicans are tir tired of him, theyre exhausted by him, they cant wait until hes gone. Just like magic john avlon appears because thats what he does. I know thats not correct grammar. The wall street Journal Editorial Board says by pushing for these 2,000 checks President Trump is giving democrats an assist to become the Senate Majority. Do they have a point . I dont he certainly put republicans in a bind because youve had Senate Candidates flip flop on 2,000 bucks to get on the president s good side and rally his voters. Whats significant about the journal making the attack, is it comes a day after the new york post, another murdock property, slammed the president and told him to stop acting crazy. Theyre saying the president is hurting the Republican Party. His personality of try to ruin if he cannot rule is actually causing political problems. But the idea that the Republican Partys fever is breaking isnt really bourn out. Youve still got over 100 folks who signed on to the amicus brief. Youve got people trying to undermine the electoral votes. And Mitch Mcconnells response is to put a poison pill forward to destroy the hope of passing the 2,000. As usual the president is not leading. The president is more interested in destroying than building. John harwood, the president also calling Republican Leadership weak and tired for voting to override his defense veto. John, im on to making the point now, the position its putting Mitch Mcconnell in and putting other republicans i think in tough positions as well, but not as tough as Mitch Mcconnell. Is he just lashing out at anyone who, you know, stopped indulging his crazy attempts the overturn the election . These are impotent ramblings of somebody who has been defeated who is not putting his should tore the wheel. You know, he talks about the Republican Leadership being weak in the context of not getting the 2,000 checks. He could careless about getting people 2,000 checks. He was checked out as john avlon said, a while ago. And he watched stood by as those negotiations went on, didnt play any part, could care less what was in the deal. And then afterwards, because he was angry that Mitch Mcconnell declared that joe biden was the president elect, which is a no brainer. Everyone in the country who has any sense understands that joe biden is the president elect and Mitch Mcconnell finally came out and said it. So, hes attacking him as weak for not obtaining the 2,000 checks. Well, thats the negotiation didnt produce those. Mitch mcconnell didnt want to do 2,000 checks. Its not that he was weak. He was opposed to them. He also said that Mitch Mcconnell and republicans are weak for not overturning the election. Well, thats idiotic. We have a democracy in the country. We vote state by state. Joe biden won a majority of the votes in more than enough states to be elected president. It doesnt make somebody weak to count the votes and say, you lost. And thats simply, you know, somebody used the phrase, you know, raging of a mad king or something. Thats exactly what it is. Charlie, listen, i think i should maybe its not just republicans but all of us. But after january 20th, will republicans actually move on from trump, or does he expect them to keep playing the game to make his supporters happy and make him happy . Are they going to keep doing really are we going to continue to pay as much attention to this man after the 20th . I hope the answer is no. I agree i hope the answer is no as well. However, we all know that donald trump is setting himself up for some Digital Media platform. Hes raised 200 million so he can play in republican primaries. So, he intends to stay engaged. If im a republican in congress right now i want donald trump to go away because 2022 by historical standards should be a good year for house republicans. They should have a good shot at winning back the majority. Its going to be hard to win back that majority for him if the issue is donald trump again. They would rather make the issue about the Biden Administration and the democrats that usually works in the midterm. But trump is not going to go away quietly. Hes going to complicate their lives. So, the real issue for republicans is will trumpism survive trump and is the party going to be ran into isolationism, unilateralism, populism and see if thats going to be a Winning Strategy going forward. I dont think it will. Its got to become more socially inclusive, constructively engage on the international stage, free markets and reasonable regulations and come up with issues on Climate Change and issues outside the comfort zone. John avlon is like that is not going to happen. I mean look from his mouth to gods ears. Thats what i was going to say. Charlie, listen, hes looking forward to 2022 as any right sensible person whos dealing with you look to the future. Were looking at 22 days. And theres one republican told cnn the president s twitter attacks are the ravings of a deposed king, they say. Are we witnessing trump just coming that he has to come to terms with the waning days, that his power is waning . Is it just going to get crazier . Yeah. Look, hes having a full meltdown because narcissist is facing the fact he lost. And he is willing to stretch our democracy to the breaking point to try to avoid that. The danger is that theres still a lot of republicans who are following him, folks who want to run for president in 2024 are going to do their best trump e routine to try to convince people theyre the logical inher tors. The problem is the Republican Party has been increasingly rewarding people who act irresponsibly, even and especially if they want to run for president. Thats dangerous for democracy. You need more republicans like kinzinger and mitt romney to stand up. That is going to be key to the success of the country, not just the senate in the next couple of years. Theyre going to be all the difference. So, listen, john we can use a couple of charlie dents too. Yes. Yeah, we could. Look at that. Look at charlie. Charlies like yeah. So, listen, john harwood, have you ever been to palm beach . I have. Gorgeous, right . And so we say this time of year when its freezing up here in the northeast, you say what could be wrong in palm beach at maralago which is supposed to be beautiful. But even at maralago things arent going so well. You know, our colleague kate bennet has got some fascinating reporting about trump being down in the dumps because he doesnt like the redecorations and renovations that were done on the trumps quarters, the residence at maralago. And he kate reported that he is lashing out at maralago staff for decisions that Melania Trump made in redecoration. He tried to reverse some of those decisions or have some of the decorations that he didnt like removed. If in the waning days of your presidency with a month out from leaving office with your constituents, your the people that you represent suffering this pandemic, the slowdown in the economic recovery, potential reversal in the economic recovery, deaths on a scale that exceed what any of us expected at the beginning of the year, if youre preoccupied with the renovations at your palatial estate in palm beach, that is another indication why youre unfit to be president , why you dont you didnt belong in that job in the first place and why the country would benefit from youre being gone in a few weeks. John makes a very good point which is the reason i asked that question, charlie dent, because you have, you know, millions of people who are who cant make ends meet, right . Cant keep the heat on right now or are in food lines and you have a president thats holding out on signing a bill. Its great he wants to give more money but he could have asked for that a lot earlier. You have people basically starving at the United States. Hes at his palatial estate, playing golf every day, people waiting on him hand and foot, at a place people pay hundreds of thousands of dollars in memberships. And according to people down there, its like covid doesnt exist because people arent Wearing Masks and theyre out doing whatever they want. Most people arent doing it and doing whatever they want. I dont understand why he has these ride or die followers because if i was a supporter and im sitting there watching him, i would be pissed off, charlie. Yeah, so would i. This is well beyond absurd anymore. This is obscene. And when you see people struggling and dying of covid and hes worried about the color of the walls down at marla da and hes also complaining the way he handled this whole covid omnibus spending bill. Ive seen this before. I watched i was involved with an omnibus bill in 2018, helped negotiate it, passed the bill out of the house and senate, sent it to the president who agreed to it and said he wasnt going to sign it. Weave seen him do it before. He doesnt negotiate in good faith. He tried to do it again. Carries on causing undue stress and worry and concern for everybody involved to what end . To try to seek attention, to be relevant knowing his relevancy is diminishing by the minute. Thats what hes doing. I swear, you really need a therapist. I said the other day this is like the little kid who holds his breath and waits for everybody else to turn blue. Were not turning blue anymore. So, thats what he does. Thats not true, charlie. Georgia did. Ha ha, bah dump bump. And pennsylvania. I still got it. All right thank you gentlemaneni appreciate. The first known case of the highly infectious covid19 variant in the United States identified in a colorado man in his 20s, no history of recent travel. That as the United States broke a pair of horrible records just today. Theres a Record Number of americans in the hospital with covid19, over 124,000, as a matter of fact, and more than 3,700 americans reported to have lost their lives to the virus today, the highest ever oneday total. Thats according to data from Johns Hopkins university. Joining me now, cnns medical analyst dr. Jonathan reiner. Good to see you. Record number of deaths from this virus tonight. This new variant more transmitable than other strains of the virus. Does it worry you we now have a confirmed case right here in the u. S. . No, i think just about everyone assumed that since in virus was identified months ago in the uk and weve had very little in the way of travel restrictions from europe that this was almost certainly in the United States. But you only find what you look for. And our genomic surveillance of these viral variants has not been great. So, we really havent been looking. And now when we look well find it. So, its been here. We know that everything that works to prevent acquiring the coronavirus works with this variant. So, we need to mask up, stay out of crowds, wash your hands, stay put and you wont get it. So, no, it doesnt it doesnt freak me out, but it just really solidifies and should solidify everyones resolve to just do the prudent things. Wear a mask. Youll be okay. So, lets look at the number of all of them. It is pfizer, moderna and novavax, which just began phase 3 vaccine trials here in america. Are all looking into how effective their vaccines are against this new variant. Are you hopeful these existing hopeful that these existing vaccines and treatments, that theyre still going to be effective . Yes, and some of the early statements from moderna and the ceo of pfizer suggest that at least their early analysis do suggest that the vaccines will produce neutralizing antibodies to the new variants. The vaurriants are probably at least 50 more transmissible, to easier to get. So, they will spread more widely. We dont think theyre necessarily more lethal. But the more people who acquire the virus, the more people who get sick. And the more people who get sick, the more people who die. So, just because theyre more transmissible will lead to more deaths. I want to talk to you about that because we are getting some breaking news in now, doctor, i want you to respond to. Were learning that congressman elect his name is like letlow from louisianna has passed away after being diagnosed with covid19. Letlow was only 41 years old. U its a tragedy. Hes very young. But it emphasizes how serious this virus can be for people of any age, doctor. Yeah, so, my heart does go out to congressmanelect letlows family. Look, you know, we tend to think about the folks who die from this illness as being old and frail, and indeed the majority of people are older. But 20 of the fatalities in the United States have been in folks under the age of 65. And if you look at people under the age of 45, even though death is relatively rare, in this country, 10,000 people under the age of 45 have died. 10,000 people. Three times as many deaths as on 9 11. So, my heart goes out to the congressmanelects family. Its a terrible tragedy. But young people can die from this. So i dont want young people to feel theyre invincible. They need to understand this virus can devastate their lives as well. People see well, you know, this person got it and they survived and whatever. But there are people who get it and dont survive it and people who dont have preexisting conditions, people who are, you know theres a photo of congressman letlow we put up on the screen there for people to see. Just so you know. Cnns confirming that incoming congressmanelect like letlow has passed away after being diagnosed with covid, 41 years old. John bel edwards releasing a statement saying its with heavy heart we offer condolences to the congressmanelects family on the passing of his battle the covid19. 41 years old. You dont know. You just dont know. Not getting enough of the vaccine out to as many people as we should. We have these semantics, these word games, were going to get out this many. Well, this is going to be available. And this is the projection and on and on. This is serious stuff still and you cannot let down your guard. No, sir, we cant. Look, what the incoming president said today is true. We can get through this. But the next couple of months are going to be awful. Were going to lose 3,000, maybe more people a day probably until were well into february. And then we should start to see some light. Were going to have some problems getting the vaccine out to the community. Well learn from our mistakes. Ultimately we will ramp it up. We need to do even better than president elect biden suggests. We need to do more than a million inoculations a day. I think we need to do ten million inoculations a week. Yeah. In order to inoculate everybody by january of next year. We can do that, but we need to really prepare ourselves for a tough, tough couple of months. Doctor, thank you. I appreciate it. Sure, good night. Thanks so much. Good night. And again our thoughts go out to congressmanelect letlow and his family. Thats my home state of louisiana. I want to tell you guys down there, this is real. Follow the guidelines. Take precautions. Wear your masks. Wash your hands. Socially distance, okay . Well be right back. And buying. Now weve created a brandnew way for you to sell your car. Whether its a year old or a few years old. We wanna buy your car. So go to carvana and enter your license plate answer a few questions. And our techno wizardry calculates your cars value and gives you a real offer in seconds. 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The president is pushing the blame to the states, tweeting in part it is up to the states to distribute the vaccines once brought to the designated areas by the federal government. We have not only developed the vaccines, including putting up the money to move the process along quickly, but gotten them to the states. Lets talk about this with gretchen whitmer. Thank you so much governor. A appreciate you being here. I hope youre having a great holiday. Lets get into it. President trump is claiming the states are to blame for the lagging vaccine distribution. Give me a response. I mean, this is the modus operandi for donald trump, right, to hoist blame where the failure truly is on the federal government. I raised this issue two weeks ago in my press conference. I said where are our vaccines . When are they coming . Why arent they here as we were expecting them to be . And two days later, general per da, to his credit owned up to the logistics issue as theirs, as a Trump Administration failure. What we need is consistent, Accurate Information so we, the state, can do planning. We also need resources which is why its disturbing that with the recent relief package theres not aid for local governments and state governments. Were going to continue to muddle through. But i am looking forward to an Incoming Administration that follows the science and works with states to make sure were all successful. Lets talk about more about your state. Initially, governor, you were promised 500,000 vaccine doses. Do you have anywhere close to that amount now . Weve made progress, but it is unpredictable. And i think thats the biggest problem. We have to build up an apparatus to administer what we anticipate, 300,000 or 500,000 vaccines and 80,000 show up, weve just wasted a lot of time, energy and resources. Part of promulgating all the priorities is an incredible amount of time and resources. And we havent gotten any help from the federal government to make sure that we are able to live up to our promise. Were doing it. Were not going to let that stop us. But at the end of the day, our ability to vaccinate the American Public depends on a functioning, predictable relationship with the federal government. And this is not michigan issued. All 50 states are in this same boat and we need a federal government that can get the job done. And thats not what we have right now. Theyre just looking to hoist blame. We have 23 days. Wither going to do the best that we can. But im very much looking forward to a Greater Partnership with the next round. Thats a perfect segue too. I want to play this for you and then you can respond. This is what the president elect joe biden said about his plan to distribute 100 million vaccine shots in his first 100 days. Here it is. Im going to move heaven and earth to get us going in the right direction. Im going to use my power under the defense production act when im sworn in and order private industry to accelerate the making of the materials needed for the vaccines as well as protective gear. So, governor, what do you need from the incoming Biden Administration to make the vaccine process as efficient as possible in michigan . I need a couple of things. First and foremost, resources. Second, we need a consistent cadence that is predictable so as we are doing our planning we know that the vaccines are there and that we can get shots in arms. Weve been having a great dialogue with the president elects team. My team and i have talked with him a number of times at this juncture. Ive been participating with the nga as well. Im on the executive board. So, we are working very closely with them. Theyre doing what the Current White House hasnt done, which is say what do we need to be successful. How do we get to a place where weve gotten at least 70 of our population vaccinated . How quickly can we do this . So, those are the type of questions that theyre asking. This is the planning that they are putting into place, and i think were going to see a big difference in our ability to meet the needs of the people. I know speaking with you over the course of this pandemic and watching your interviews and just seeing what youre doing, youre keenly aware of the science when it comes to this virus. But youre also aware that, you know, business, people need to make money, right . They need to be able to take care of their families and themselves. Youre allowing some indoor venues like casinos and bowling alleys to reopen with fewer restrictions. The virus is spike lg all over the country. Why loosen the restrictions in michigan now, governor. Im really proud of whats happening here in michigan. We were like every other state, about five, six weeks ago, our numbers were incredibly high. Weve had a sustained 30day trend of cases coming down, positivity rates coming down, hospitalizations coming down. Were doing it right because were following the science. Now, its all tenuous. We know if we drop our guard, we think that were out of the woods that those numbers can spike fast again. But because of the tactic that weve taken following the science and being really smart and targeted where we make policy changes weve had a much greater level of success. Were now leading the midwest and we are 46th in the nation when it comes to percentage of positivity. So, theres good stuff thats happening when you follow the science. But like i said, its tenuous. Thats why weve got to keep following the numbers and do everything we can to build up our vaccine administration. Well, i think thats the calculus that people that most people believe that you should follow the science but also figure out a way to keep the economy going as well. So, that is a good effort to do that. But again, if things get worse youre going to have to make adjustments as you just said. Understood. I also want to get your take on the stimulus bill on capitol hill. Lawmakers are arguing over the size of the checks. People are struggling without food, no jobs and its cold. Theyve got to keep the heat on right now. What is your message to congress tonight, governor . Well, it is cold. Its cold in every sense of the word. There are americans everywhere who have been scraping to get by. Its not its not their fault. It is not the fault of their employer. Its the fault of this virus and our federal governments lack of ability to get their arms around it. We cant address the economic crisis were confronting as a nation without addressing the health crisis. And the fact that the president went down to go golfing for a week and has now taken a weeks worth of benefits from people im glad he signed the bill. Im glad he said he wants 2,000. I would love to see congress get that done because there are americans everywhere who are just trying to get through these toughest months and they need a little bit of help. This isnt stimulus. This releief for people who are struggling. Governor, be safe. Thank you so much and happy new year to you. Thank you. You too. Whos at the front of the line for a Coronavirus Vaccine . When it comes to capitol hill, the answer could surprise you. Well look at that next. gong rings this is joe. combative yelling he used to have bad breath. Now, he uses a capful of therabreath fresh breath oral rinse to keep his breath smelling great, all day long. combative yelling therabreath, its a better mouthwash. At walmart, target and other fine stores. To your friends. Your family. To your teachers. In that spirit of giving, chevys proud to give our employee discount to everyone. The chevy price you pay,. Is what we pay. Not a cent more. Because giving,. And giving back, is what the holidays are all about. Use the chevy employee discount for everyone to get a total value of over eight thousand four hundred dollars on this silverado. Get the chevy employee discount for everyone today. Okay, lets do it. All righty. Vice president elect Kamala Harris joining more than 2 million americans vaccinated for the coronavirus. The incoming leader of the free world and the woman who will be a heart beat away from the job should get covid protection as quickly as possible. But with so few vaccinations given across america so far, there are questions about who else is getting the shot sooner. Heres cnns brian todd. Reporter new information on who is moving to the front of the line are in the Coronavirus Vaccine. A letter obtained by cnn from the attending physician of the u. S. Capitol to all the house and Senate Offices this week says each of those offices can have at least two staffers receive the vaccine now. The letter specifies those staffers should be people whose jobs are necessary for kont flewity of operations. This comes as less than 10 of the Frontline Health care workers and residents of longterm care homes in america who have priority to get the vaccine have actually received it so far. But one prominent doctor says its appropriate for congressional staffers to get it. Certainly keeping our government operating and serving us as the citizens is an important feature. So i think it is important that government does have for essential workers to keep the government running vaccines supplied to them. Reporter in the sports arena, according to espn, the nba warned its teams last week they should not try to get the vaccine for their players and staff ahead of everyone else except people who have high risks for complications. Nba commissioner adam silver spoke about that p. Theres no way wed ever jump the line and for the most part because our players are young and healthy without some sort of comorbidity, they will not be a high priority. Reporter this comes as we hear stories of wealthy, wellconnected people trying to pay top dollar to jump to the front of the vaccine line. Dr. David nazarian with a concierge medical practice has alist celebrities and entertainment execs. Hes getting a lot of calls from those clients pressuring him to give them the vaccine now. I have patients call and want to make donations to charity, to hospitals, to the practice, to be able to pay 5,000, 10,000 to get their families vaccinated. Reporter but dr. Nazarian is determined to follow the governments vaccine guidelines and has turned all those requests down. People that are wealthy and usually have access to things, this is one of those things thats difficult. Its difficult for them to understand that they have to wait. Reporter there are also reports of hospitals taking unprecedented steps to boost security to protect their vaccines from being stolen. And theres concern that crime syndicates may target vaccine supply chains to steal doses or run vaccine scams. You always have the concern about it being stolen or siphoned off to a black market type of situation. This is something we need to be on the lookout for. Reporter as for doctors in private practices coming under enormous pressure to give the vaccine to their patients early, some states have begun investigating doctors who are suspected of going against the governments guidelines on who should get it first, and those states could take away the licenses of doctors who break those rules. Brian todd, cnn, washington. Brian todd, thank you so much for that. Well be right back. These folks, they dont have time to go to the post office they have businesses to grow customers to care for lives to get home to they use stamps. 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And he says that his companion shared the pot with him was one of the servants at the white house. That is not exactly true. It actually was one of my sons which he didnt want to categorize as a pot smoker like him. There were some people who didnt like my being deeply involved with Willie Nelson and bob dylan and disreputable Rock N Rollers but i didnt care about that because i was doing what i really believed. And the response, i think, from the followers of those musicians was much more influential than a few people who thought that being associated with rock n roll and radical people was inappropriate for a president. On a new cozy bedroom and wake up on the right side of the bed this year. From the fluffiest down duvet youll ever feel. Crisp and light percale sheets, to cool, supportive mattresses and plush pillow for your best nights sleep. Treat yourself to a new year of comfort and shop the new year sale with up to 15 off at casper. Com to all the businesses make it through 2020. Thank you for going the extra mile. And for the extra pump of caramel. Thank you for the good food. And the good karma. Thank you for all the deliveries. Especially this one. Youve reminded us that no matter what, we can always find a way to bounce forward. So thank you, to our customers and to businesses everywhere, from all of us at comcast business. Hello and welcome to our viewers in the United States and around the world. Im paula newton live from cnn center in atlanta where its 2 00 am on the east coast, 11 00 p. M. On the west coast. The new coronavirus strain first found in the uk has now been confirmed right here in the United States. On tuesday, officials said a man in colorado was infected somehow even though he had no travel history. And thats significant. This news comes with the u. S. Continuing to shatter pandemic records. On tuesday the country reported more than 3700 new deaths fo